Neptunia Wars: Advance
by PanzerHippo
Summary: Welcome to Gamindustri, Wars Dimension, where each nation has waged war on a frequent basis. Colorful, light-hearted war, that is. Although peace came from the familiarity of conflict between the four nations, one event - and one power - will threaten it. [Neptunia x Advance Wars fanfic]
1. Prologue

_Welcome… to Gamindustri. But not the same Gamindustri as before. Before was a land ruled by goddesses all competing with each other for greatness and the privilege of becoming the best and most powerful in the land. Before was a land where each goddesses' mettle was tested by their personal skills and power - their prowess representative of the nation they led. Before was a land that lived in relative harmony under the guidance and protection of the goddesses that ruled over._

 _But here, in Wars Dimension, Gamindustri is a land where each nation is locked in a near-perpetual and frequent state of conflict. Colorful, light-hearted, and orderly conflict no less._

 _In this world, the goddesses of each nation lead armies into battle, with command of land, sea, and air as the nation's commanding officers, or COs. Their proficiency in battle now replaced with skills of leading armies; their divine powers now aiding their troops rather than themselves._

 _Wars have begun and ended as routinely as the sun rises and sets; alliances have formed as frequently as pacts have been broken. But no matter what, the situation has yet to change until it was ultimately accepted that so long as the nations exist, so will battle. And as long as battle exists, so will the nations that inhabit Wars Dimension. And while the conflicts that raged were not of annihilation or conquest, they were still a competition over the land's supply of Share energy._

 _But eventually, this will all change as one day, one dared to upset the world balance with thoughts of utter and total domination of Gamindustri and its Shares. When the balance of power will be almost tipped and the peace held by perpetual conflict among equal powers would now be thrown into disarray and chaos._

 _That day, a new power will rise to challenge the status quo._

 _That day, the skills and commitment of all nations and their goddess COs will be tested._

 _It was also on that day, that Planeptune received two new rookie COs._

* * *

 _A/N:  
_ _HistoricHippos:_

In case any reader didn't get the idea already, this is a crossover fic between Neptunia and the Advance Wars series. This is not - I repeat - NOT going to be a dark, gritty war-fic as you might've assumed by reading the title or the prologue. This will not delve into the horrors of war or any of that stuff. Suffice to say, if the Advance Wars games (pre- _Days of Ruin_ ) didn't really touch on those subjects, then neither will this story.

That said, as this is a crossover, just imagine this as a Neptunia game/story that just so happens to be reimagined as an Advance Wars game with appropriate stuff and game mechanics (or as best as I can interpret and adapt them). The mood will attempt to emulate that of the first two or three _Advance Wars_ (so this story won't be as serious as _Days of Ruin_ , but that is not to say that everything from _Days of Ruin_ will be completely ignored). Other than that, happy reading!


	2. It's War!

_Dear Diary,_

 _Just today, me and my little sis turn out to be new goddesses for a little-known nation known as Planeptune! And apparently, all goddesses enroll into the nation's military to become a CO! (That means "Commanding Officer" by the way!) Ooooh, I can't wait to see what it's like: wearing a really fancy uniform (hope it's comfy!), get the best food and service (hope they serve pudding!), see how well we kick butt, and most importantly the fact that it means I can stay all comfy while I do all of that!_

 _Anyways, we both got sent to a base camp where we're supposed to learn all about being a CO and CO-y stuff. Most of it was just another CO as our instructor yelling and screaming while we learned. (Hope she doesn't read this!) It was mostly simple: tell the units to go there, attack that, yadda-yadda-yadda. So far, I think me and Nep Jr. are getting the hang of this! Granted, we spent a lot of time just blowing up dummies and targets, but hey, it can't be that hard, right? Luckily, I have the power of protag-rules with me!_

 _Oh wait, hang on. There's some loud sound going on outside. Dunno what it's about, but the instructor CO barged in saying it's a emergency and stuff and that we need to follow her to HQ. (That's "headquarters" by the way!) And the weird thing is, we weren't even done!_

… _I meant the pudding I saved for breakfast, not the training... Well, that too._

 _-Neptune_

* * *

 **Planeptune-Lowee border**

The vast green plains that once knew only tranquil peace became crushed underfoot by the rumbling treads and stomping boots. The air which knew only peaceful silence became violated by the sounds of grinding wheels as the mechanized army swept through the land. The only piece of nature that remained untainted by the coming war was the sky which remained blue and bright. The tanks, vehicles, and soldiers all wore white and bore the white crescent moon with a stylized L and W next to it: the emblem of Lowee's military.

From her vantage point, the CO leading them saw all: the white mass that was her army, the green field surrounding them that was Planeptune's territory, the lack of resistance she encountered along the way, and most importantly, the mass of purple that dotted the horizon far ahead of them along with a lone spire-like tower that pierced the sky - Planeptune's capital. Their prize lay bare before them, ready for the taking. Peering through the binoculars, she could almost reach out and touch it.

Blanc, commanding officer of the Lowee Army, set her binoculars down; her eyes still focused in the direction of Planeptune's capital. Her gaze was filled with cold determination as the sight filled dark thoughts in her mind.

' _Soon… real soon, I'll finally pay them back for what they did!'_

* * *

 **Planeptune Army HQ**

Histoire waited by the end of the table, anxiously waiting as she sat alone with the map of Planeptune laid out before her. At the center of the map lay a tiny scale model of the capital's iconic tower, a symbol of the nation's identity as well as where she was currently in right now.

But as her gaze shifted a little to the north, what concerned her the most were the block pieces that steadily approached the capital. Just a couple hours ago, she had just received reports of a massive border incursion to the nation's north and as the reports kept being updated, so did the pieces' location on the map. Bit by bit, it was becoming clear who they were and where they were headed: the capital of Planeptune was the destination of the Lowee Army.

But why? No matter how much Histoire tried to think, she couldn't come up with a rational explanation for why their northern neighbor had suddenly declared war via massed troop movements. She didn't recall any recent incidents between the two nations, and any hostilities they had before ended quite some time ago as the two nations agreed to live in truce. She couldn't remember any diplomatic transgressions, whether they were words that were never meant to be said, rude behavior, or simply because someone from both nations became upset over a friendly videogame match and couldn't handle a rage-quit.

It was as if the entire nation of Lowee had just decided to start a war for simply no reason other than to start a war.

The door burst open and Histoire glanced up, relieved to see the newcomers. "Commander Uzume, it is good to see that you have arrived."

Uzume returned with a confident smile. "Came as fast as we could, Histy. Also brought the two rookies with me."

Uzume gestured to the two lilac-haired girls that had accompanied her. Histoire glanced at them and immediately recognized the two as Planeptune's two new COs, complete with the light-purple military uniforms that were standard among Planeptune armed personnel. Ever since they were recruited into the Planeptune Army, she had already taken the liberty of looking into their files.

"Neptune and Nepgear, was it?" Histoire asked. The two eagerly nodded and even at a glance, Histoire could see the clear differences between the two: the one with long hair had both anxious and courage written all over her face while the other, who had shorter hair seemed less daunted; whether it was out of bravery, ignorance, or both, Histoire couldn't quite tell.

"I'm Neptune, happy-go-lucky goddess ready for action!" the shorter-haired girl bragged, "Nepgear's my little sister, though I like to call her Nep Jr.!"

Histoire could only gape at the two greenhorns, Neptune exuding a confident air with hands on her hips while Nepgear blushed a little. Looking at the former, she was beginning to consider another possibility: that Neptune was just plain foolish.

Uzume sighed, as if she could share Histoire's thoughts on their first impression. "... Yeah, she was like that during field training. Taught them as much as I could but..."

"It's all right, Uzume," Histoire assured. The book she sat on hovered above and over the map, bringing all the CO's (technically one CO and two yet-to-be COs) attention as Histoire began her briefing.

"The situation is quite dire. Armed forces identified to be that of Lowee's have launched a sudden strike from the north and are fast approaching the capital. I do not know what their motives may be, but they must be stopped before they can reach it. Commander Plutia is busy guarding the other parts of our borders so it must be up to you three to halt the enemy's advance."

By now, all three were silent and attentive; even Neptune was starting to take this seriously. Histoire continued. "What Planeptune units I could mobilize have already been deployed at the northern pass. They will be the only thing between Lowee and our capital. Commander Uzume, I entrust the defense to you as well as the wellbeing of our new COs!"

"Sure thing, Histy!" declared Uzume, clenching her fist in anticipation of a fight. "Nepsy, Gearsy! Prepare to move out!"

"Um, yes ma'am!" chanted the two sisters as they snapped up a quick salute.

* * *

Uzume reviewed their defense on the map. The simple diagram made up of square grids was decorated with colors that denoted terrain and icons that resembled 2D character sprites indicated notable features as well as the relative location of each unit. From what she could see, the north passageway consisted of three land bridges, all separated by large lakes. The center passageway was the only one with a road connection whereas the others did not. Clumps of forests, mountains, and friendly settlements dotted the otherwise flat open landscape.

Three ways for the enemy to approach the capital and three COs to stop them in their tracks.

Uzume turned to face Neptune and Nepgear who had also been peering at the map. "Alright, first things first: I know we haven't had the time to fully complete your field training as you've only been taught the basic stuff, but I'll need you two to do your best, you hear me?"

Neptune did a quick salute but as it was evident, it was of a playful kind. "After how much you've yelled at us during training, we'll make sure not to let you down, ma'am!"

A light punch to Neptune's shoulder set her back to normal. "Yeah you better, because if you let me down, I'll make sure you hear me in your sleep!"

Nepgear timidly raised her hand. "Um, what do you want us to do?"

Uzume laid the map before them and pointed at the center land bridge. "Judging by this road and the open terrain running next to it, this should be the fastest route the enemy can take if they want a piece of our capital. And since I'm the only veteran CO around here, I'll take charge of defending that route! The two of you will guard the flanks and make sure nothing gets past or around us!"

Nepgear voiced her confirmation but Neptune instead pointed at the unit formation. "Hey, how come you've got all the best stuff while we get the run-of-the-mill stuff?" she complained.

Uzume sighed. "As I've said, Nepsy, that road is likely where they'll be focusing on and I've got far more experience under my belt than you two! The two of you are just rookies so until you can prove yourself, you'll have to deal with the basic land units."

Nepgear was about to acknowledge Uzume's justifications until, taking more notice of their army's deployment, noticed something else. "And, um, you're fine without any indirect units? You're giving them all to us?"

Uzume looked to the side as she rubbed the back of her head. "Yeah, well, that's because hitting stuff from afar just isn't my style. I prefer the old-fashioned way: get right up and blast 'em right in the face! Pow! Right in the kisser!"

The two stared blankly at Uzume suddenly becoming passionate about her commanding style and preferred tactics. Realizing the awkward looks, Uzume flustered, her cheeks glowing as red as her hair.

"W-w-well, whatever! You got your orders, so move it!"

* * *

Neptune looked around at the units that were guarding the east flank: a few units of five light tanks each parked in the open, a couple units of mobile artillery positioned beside the body of water that separated her from Uzume's troops, an APC, and a couple units of mechanized infantry (or mech) camped on the high ground while a nearby settlement lay behind her, ready for repairs and resupply. Nepgear was assigned a unit composition similar to her's, and from across the lake, Neptune eyed the clumps of regular tanks and even a couple Md Tank units with envy. Not only did Uzume leave herself with the biggest tanks, she also had the most!

"Ehhh..." Neptune sighed, "One day… one day, 'ol _General_ Neptune will get her chance..."

" _And indeed you will, but only if you've successfully repelled their attack!_ "

The sudden voice caused Neptune to jump. "Woah! Who's there? A ghost? A ghost that just so happens to have Histy's voice?"

" _... It's your radio, Neptune._ "

A smile of relief spread across Neptune's face. "Ohhhh, that makes a whole lot of sense! Say, how's it going, Histy?"

A sigh could be heard on the other end. " _I'd prefer if you called me by my actual name. But anyways, you and Nepgear have learned the basics, correct?_ "

"Of course, my little Histy dear!" Neptune happily proclaimed, "Uzume made sure that we learned them by shouting as loud as she could (along with some colorful insults)! Stuff like how to tell who to go where, what to do, how to make stuff explode, and um… Um… Yeah, that's as far as I can remember!"

Another sigh escaped from Histoire's lips. " _... I was afraid this would be the case. Well please pay attention because time is short: it's true that you have the minimum essentials down, but do keep in mind other things to consider. Say, for example, using the terrain to your advantage. Where a unit is determines how well protected they are from attacks. Open terrain such as plains, roads, or rivers leave your unit extremely vulnerable whereas more enclosed terrain such as forests and cities offer more protection. As such, I do recommend that you keep your frontline units as well-protected as possible!_ "

"Ooh, that makes sense! Good one, Histy!"

" _I'm telling you, it's Histoire!_ " Another sigh could be heard. " _Anyways, I'm contacting you to let all of you know that I will be in touch to oversee the course of the battle as well as help provide you and Nepgear with useful information._ "

"That's sweet and dandy like sour candy, Histy!" sang Neptune, "I'll make sure to call you when I need help!"

Another sigh could be heard coming from Histoire.

* * *

On the center flank, Uzume stood on the roof of one of her Md tanks. Its bulky size - and appropriately, its increased firepower and defense - put the standard tank unit to shame. Like all Planpetune military hardware, it was all purple and angular with the emblem of Planeptune's armed forces proudly emblazoned somewhere on the exterior: a deep purple ringed planet with a single bold P in the center.

From her vantage point, Uzume could see for miles around thanks to her binoculars, making out distant terrain and the approaching clouds of dust along with the occasional flash of movement that foretold the arrival of their enemy. But while she couldn't make visual with the enemy yet, there was something that she could see - or rather _couldn't_.

' _Hmm… No aircraft? Lowee must be in a hurry to make it to Planeptune. And the sky's all clear so no chance that they were hiding in the fog of war...'_ As she continued observing, a first wave of Lowee units burst from the treeline and into open view, their armor and uniforms all white. The color almost reminded Uzume of her own uniform which was an unnatural white unlike the others of Planeptune, but so long as she kept the emblems there was no chance that anyone would mistake her for anyone else.

She studied the first few units. A few tank units, some infantry, recon, and a couple huge-box-on-treads that were APCs, loaded with supplies and room for troops like every other nation's. As far as Uzume was concerned, they should be manageable, especially since she and the others held home-field advantage. More Lowee units appeared in view and so far, bringing in more of what she saw as well as some mobile artillery. But there was one thing that Uzume couldn't see yet: who it was that was leading the Lowee army.

From the zoomed-in perspective of the binoculars, Uzume's view swung to the left, then to the right, seeing nothing but the white standing out in stark contrast to the lively scenery until -

She saw her; standing alone on a hill, on top of one of her own tanks, was the enemy CO. With that white-grey fur coat of hers and sleeves that were a little long for her arms, and that winter cap that bore the emblem of the Lowee Army was…

"... Blanc," Uzume whispered. Immediately, a quick list of everything regarding Blanc filtered in Uzume's head. Her rank, her personality, her preferred tactics…  
… And of course, what she can do.

Uzume snatched a radio. "Everyone, listen up! I've ID'ed the enemy CO: it's Blanc!"

" _Blanc… You mean Lowee's top CO?!_ "

"Yep, it's her all right, Gearsy," replied Uzume, "I've already made visual contact with her units! Get ready for a fight, everyone!"

From afar, Nepgear nervously gulped whereas Neptune stood boldly in open challenge to their very first opponent: Blanc, the goddess and CO of Lowee, land of the frozen north.


	3. Gathering Storm

Her forward recon had already reported sighting of Planeptune units positioned in their path, so Blanc ordered a brief halt in the advance as she surveyed the situation. From where she stood, she could see the purple blots that sprinkled out in the horizon in front of her advance - Planeptune troops had been deployed ahead of them, barricading the main road with armor and guns poised in their direction.

Blanc was interrupted by the appearance of a white armored car that was one her nation's recon unit that deposited a Lowee soldier by her side. "Commander Blanc! We have determine that the fastest route to Planeptune is being guarded by enemy heavy armor!"

' _Hmph. About time we encountered actual resistance,'_ thought Blanc as she scanned the formation of Planeptune tanks, Md tanks, and other assortment of vehicles and soldiers. Luckily, it seemed as though they did not have time to deploy aircraft of their own as well, which was fortunate. But the fact that the one road that led straight to her objective was a chokepoint was troublesome.

"We have also determined another thing!" continued the soldier, "We have ascertained that the enemy force is being led by commander Uzume!"

The mention of her name made Blanc smile inside. ' _So they send that musclehead to try and defeat me, huh? Come to think of it, that certainly explains why I didn't see any artillery or rockets. How typical of her...'_

Blanc stashed away her binoculars and turned to the trooper who still remained. A plan began formulating in her mind. "Have these units position themselves there!..."

* * *

Across from where her units were, the chalk-white boxes that were two units of Lowee's light tanks scuttled around in plain view. Straight ahead were Uzume's Md tanks that waited in their current position. She was already decently entrenched, but the sight of enemy units all by their lonesome made it very tempting to roll out and kick their proverbial teeth in.

The enemy tanks rolled into view, then held position. Then after a minute, they moved again, creeping closer before coming to a halt. This whole time, both sides remained out of firing range from each other. Uzume frowned; the battle conditions were clear so if she could see them, they should see her so they couldn't be performing reconnaissance.

The radio squaked. " _Um, what exactly are those tanks doing?_ "

"Hmm. They're probably trying to bait me or something, Gearsy," Uzume replied, keeping her eyes on the Lowee tanks, "Get me to move first to try to hit 'em before pulling back." She paused as another unit of enemy tanks and mech entered her view. "Yeah, it might be that they're trying to lure me to move in before they hit me with numbers."

" _Really? Get you to move in and attack first? You always said that attacking first was important since the unit's attack power would be higher or whatever._ "

" _That is true, Neptune,_ " answered Histoire, " _But that doesn't always mean charging headfirst into the fray is always the best solution._ "

Uzume continued observing as the white troops positioned themselves directly across from her, the center passageway shifting into a peculiar stand-off. "Hey Gearsy, Nepsy! I have an idea. Get your artillery to do something useful here."

Across the large lake that separated the land bridges, Nepgear observed the curious movement of the Lowee Army from her angle, and upon hearing Uzume's request she immediately put two and two together. "Um, right! That's a roger!"

" _Oookay!_ " her sister agreed through the crackling radio, " _One special serving of Nep-Delight, coming up!_ " ("'Nep-Delight'? What…?" Uzume rhetorically asked in disbelief.)

Their respective artillery units elevated their guns as the spotters relayed the coordinates and once confirmed, opened fire. The then-peaceful battleground shuddered from the very first shots of the battle and a second later, geysers of dirt and smoke popped all over the position of the white units. The few tank units had each taken a hit, with the one parked directly on the road receiving the most damage. As though panicked, the tanks and the mech all turned tail and retreated the other way.

" _Planeptune: 1! Lowee: 0!_ " cheered Neptune. " _Hey, hey! I want to go again! I can still see them and everything!_ "

"Um, Neptune, hold on!" warned Nepgear as she glanced at the map, looking at the location of both their artillery and the relative locations of their previous target. "If I'm looking at the map correctly, they might be well out of range of our artillery!"

" _Awww, man..._ " Neptune whined.

" _Can it, Nepsy!_ " Uzume barked, " _Whatever they were trying to do, it looks like we ruined their day. But stay sharp! We'll see what their next move is!_ "

* * *

Blanc would be the first to admit that she was surprised by what happened. Her advance team was reporting zero movement from the Planeptune Army. Then their position was bombarded by indirect fire before she had the chance to move her own artillery into position to bombard the enemy Md tanks. Blanc quickly ordered a withdraw then surveyed the battlefield again.

Something wasn't right. ' _That was indirect fire alright! But Uzume doesn't favor indirect attacks! So then how…?'_

She scanned the enemy position ahead of her army once again, seeing nothing but entrenched armor and the CO herself. There was some urban terrain behind them, but even then any artillery that Uzume would have would be out of range if they were there. So if the attack didn't come from behind her, then…

A Lowee trooper jogged by her side with radio in hand. "Commander! Our scouts believe the enemy artillery fire came from the flanks, both east and west of the center passageway!"

' _So that was it...'_ Blanc thought as she swung her view past the body of water that funneled the main route to Planeptune capital into a chokepoint. Beyond the water, she made out small purple forms filtering through the trees and bushes. She could imagine more of them hiding among the green vegetation. But that still didn't answer her original question.

' _When did Uzume learn to use indirect attacks…?'_ As she observed the hidden Planpetune forces, Blanc suddenly stopped as her view rested on a single individual, her hair as purple as the uniform she wore. But her outfit was something most Planeptune personnel wore but more importantly, she made herself stand out from the soldiers near her.

' _... Is she…?'_

"Commander!" interrupted the same soldier as she listened from the radio headset. "We've also spotted another person who appears to be leading the forces on the other flank! We don't know their identities, but they're definitely from Planeptune!"

Blanc lowered her binoculars upon hearing that. ' _Two special people from Planeptune… leading part of the Planeptune Army…? But that means that those two are...'  
_ "... COs," Blanc quietly concluded, "They're Planeptune COs. But I don't know anything about them except..."

As the facts began to lay out in front of her, a small revelation popped in her mind. And when it did, Blanc felt a small sense of elation.

"... That they must be rookie COs." With that fact in mind, Blanc quickly cooked up another strategy - one that she was certain would win her the day. And with that in mind…

As it was commonly accepted, all COs were goddesses by nature. Their divine powers were fed by the faith and trust of her nation and people: Shares. That one resource was the source of all conflicts that was waged all over Gamindustri in more ways than one. Not only was its supply something to fight over, it was also a resource that made these wars interesting, as each goddess who proved her worth earned the privilege of utilizing their unique powers.

From where she stood, Blanc called forth her Shares. She felt the power flow through her very being. It was a familiar feeling, one she was no stranger to thanks to months of battlefield experience. It was a power that cemented her identity and her reputation. She was Lowee's top CO and her powers reflected that.

The once-blue skies became shrouded by dark clouds and the warmth of the day gave way to wind that fell over the land with its cold breath.

' _Time to show these two nobodies what a real CO can do!'_

* * *

Neptune glanced up to see the weather suddenly shift as grey clouds suddenly blotted out the bright sun. The wind howled and she shivered as the cold bit her skin. "Y-y-y-yowzers! What the heck is up with the weather?!" As she spoke, sprinkles of white slowly drifted to the ground

" _U-um, no idea!_ " Nepgear cried through the radio, " _I-it got cold all of the sudden!_ "

" _That's Blanc pullin' out her CO Power!_ " Uzume yelled, " _Everyone hold steady! She's definitely got to be trying something!_ "

Before Neptune knew it, the snow began appearing everywhere: on the ground, on the trees, her uniform, and along with the howling wind that sprinkled more snow everywhere. Neptune sneezed as she shivered again. "O-o-oh man! Nobody said anything about fighting in a freak snowstorm! I request a reinforcement of hot cocoa!"

Histoire's voice came over the radio. " _Neptune, I know who you feel, but you must hold your position! With this much snow, trying to get anywhere will be incredibly troublesome. But this is like what commander Uzume said: summoning a snowstorm is Blanc's special power and her specialty is that her units perform better in these conditions!_ "

"U-u-um, what? What does that mean?" demanded Neptune.

" _Heads up! I got more of Blanc's guys headed my way!_ " reported Uzume. Grumbling, Neptune cast her eyes toward the center land-bridge. For once, she found it much more difficult trying to spot the enemy units, as their white exteriors made them seemingly blend in with the piling snow. After some effort, she finally managed to spot more tanks that remained motionless where they were.

"All right! I think I got snow in my boots but I'll give them another round of Nep-Delight: Holiday Special!" declared Neptune, "Artillery, fire!"

But no thunderous cannonfire came forth. "Um, ma'am," began a Planeptune soldier by the SPG, "We've determined that the targets are outside our effective range."

"Whaaaat?! You gotta be nepping with me!" Neptune complained. The radio crackled as her sister's voice came through. " _Yeah, mine can't hit them either! They're just outside our attack range!_ "

" _Well that's just great! What they'd expect us to do? Sit on our butts while they freeze? Or - or… Oh, crap!_ "

"Hm? What's wrong, Uzume?" Neptune asked, her mood dampened by the disappointment and the snow that slowly began to accumulate on her head.

" _Nepsy! Gearsy! You've got Lowee units headed right for you!_ "

* * *

Nepgear swiftly whirled to the north to find white forms plowing through the snow at attack speed. One - no wait, two tank units - Nepgear didn't bother to continue counting as she immediately picked up her radio. "There's Lowee units headed my way fast!" Turning to the nearest soldier, she continued. "Get the tanks out there to stop them!"

Without a hitch, the few tank units under Nepgear's command lurched forward to intercept the oncoming threat, but as Nepgear could see, their treads were struggling to plow through the thick snow. Her tanks met the enemy's in the open clearing and both sides opened fire. Thankfully, Nepgear's fired first but she saw that after the first exchange, their overall unit health was roughly equal. But then the enemy tanks opened fire and in shock, saw that her tank units were clearly losing the fight.

Nepgear quickly looked around for what else to use. "Um, artillery! Open fire on those tanks close to ours, they need all the help they can get!" At once, the treads and gears of her SPGs all groaned and clanked as they rotated and pivoted their cannons upward. They opened fire and as Nepgear saw, they expertly hit their marks on the Lowee tanks despite the fact they were locked in direct combat with hers. Now under fire, the enemy tanks chose to withdraw, battered and bruised. But her tank units were just as damaged and as Nepgear continued watching, she could see more Lowee units in the distance advancing straight for her.

" _Woah! They got more coming straight for me!_ " Neptune's voice rang out.

"Yeah, same for me too!" Nepgear replied, "Just managed to hold them off but my guys took a beating!"

Over on her side, Uzume observed the enemy movement on her flanks. Just as she feared, Blanc's units were moving swiftly through the snowstorm as if it wasn't even there. The two rookies under her care just got their first taste of combat and already their frontline units weren't looking good. Worse, there were more moving in.

She glanced back at her defences and noted that the Lowee units directly ahead of her remained motionless. That was when it all clicked together.

" _I-I don't think I can hold them back any further at this rate!_ " Nepgear frantically called out. This wasn't good - panicking COs only lead to trouble.

"Nepsy, Gearsy! I'll send some of my own to back you up! In the meantime, try to fall back closer to our HQ!" She didn't bother waiting for an acknowledgement as she swiftly directed a few of her own tanks, infantry, and mechs to double-time it over to the flanks. But she kept her Md tanks with her to continue defending the route.

How could she not have anticipated this? Of _course_ a veteran CO like Blanc would come to realize that she was hooked up with rookies. And once she found out, she'd recognize them as their weak spot. If the flanks collapsed, then Uzume's position would be in danger; and if that happened, then the entire defense would be compromised.

She quickly brought her radio back up again. "Histy, you read? Nepsy and Gearsy's in trouble! I'm going to need some reinforcements -"

"Commander Uzume!" a soldier shouted, "Enemy armor advancing our direction at full speed!"

* * *

 _-LOWEE MILITARY DOSSIER-_

 _COMMANDING OFFICER: Blanc  
_ _REGISTRATION #: LW07151983_

 _CO ABILITIES:  
_ _Units under her command are unaffected by snowstorms or cold weather; perform better in those environments_

 _CO POWER:  
_ _Summon a snowstorm_

 _HITS: Reading & writing  
_ _MISS: Book scribbles_

 _NOTE(S):  
_ _Commander Blanc is certainly Lowee's top CO as anyone who has fought our nation may attest. As Lowee is a northernmost nation of Gamindustri, I must say it is quite appropriate that her power revolves around calling forth snow; ask any citizen of Lowee and one thing that they see quite frequently is snow. No matter what the weather conditions were before, Blanc can always make it as cold as the nation whenever the opportunity arises. (Amusingly enough, the demand for hot chocolate and other warm drinks seem to skyrocket whenever that happens, though it does make it quite a nuisance to shovel out the snow from the streets and roads...) Understandably, Blanc has ensured that all units under her command are trained and well-versed at fighting in cold-weather conditions, almost to the point of performing better than if there was no snow.  
_ _Personality-wise, she exudes a rather cool exterior (oh no, please tell me that wasn't a pun...) but can quickly swing into irritation and outrage at a moment's notice. Those moments understandably come during moments where any normal person would be enraged but for Blanc her list of triggers and buttons seem quite… high. Also noteworthy is that when she does genuinely become enraged it can be more volatile and volcanic than a normal person. This can be troublesome to contend with in person but it is more problematic during a battle when a calm head is necessary for rational tactical thinking. Her temper has sometimes been the instrument to her tactical shortcomings and missteps...  
_ _Besides her, other Lowee goddesses are confirmed to be her two younger sisters (Rom and Ram) who Blanc seems to be fond of (though she may not show it or express it well enough at times). However, despite the fact that her sisters are qualified, Blanc seems very hesitant to send the pair into direct command role. While this is understandably an innate desire to protect them, this does result in the two lacking in combat experience which shows whenever they are deployed. This in turn seems to reinforce Blanc's notion to keep them away from the action as much as possible. I'm afraid that all this will accomplish is put Lowee at a handicap. I must certainly find an opportunity to address this issue to commander Blanc when I have the time..._

 _-Mina Nishizawa_

* * *

 _A/N:  
_ _HistoricHippos:_

So yeah, Blanc's the Olaf in this world, with the same abilities and powers (though lacking Olaf's initial weakness to rain and personality from the first _Advance Wars_ game. Also, for some reason I'm imagining Blanc with Olaf's fur coat and an ushanka). In addition, you've probably already guessed it last chapter but Uzume will adopt Max's playstyle and abilities. The initial invasion of Planeptune was also directly inspired by Mission 1 of the first _Advance Wars_ game, with Olaf invading Orange Star against Andy (complete with the chapter title having the same name as that mission).

Other known CPUs will also have powers and abilities directly based on other _Advance Wars_ characters, though not all will be a perfect one-to-one imitation (there may be some mix and matching here and there). Also, no Super CO Powers. (Which means no chance of one-shotting a tank with machine-gun fire because the CO is filthy-rich. Sorry.)

Also, to further draw parallels between Blanc and Olaf's abilities and role, the Lowee Army will pretty much adopt Blue Moon's army aesthetics (AKA Russian-inspired military designs and hardware), though there'll be some differences. For example, I imagine Lowee recon units resembling the BA-64 armored cars, tanks resembling chibi T-34-85s, and Md tanks resembling KV-2s. By contrast, the Planeptune Army will adopt a more "high-tech but grounded" aesthetic; their recon units may resemble the Panhard VBL, tanks will resemble the M551 Sheridan, Md tanks will be a cross between the PL-01 and the Merkava MBT, and Planeptune B-copters will resemble the RAH-66 Comanche.


	4. A Nep Moment

Blanc smiled to herself as she watched Uzume divert some of her own units to assist with the others. She specifically ordered a spearhead against the new COs, knowing that their inexperience would bite them as hard as the bitter cold of her power. Though the snow didn't exactly freeze her opposition, it did slow them down as they were weighed down by the weather and the cold; anyone would.

But not hers. The units under her command not only ignored the snow and the cold, they thrived in it. Her CO Power and their training saw to that. With the power of the weather on her side, the Planeptune Army would be at her ice-cold mercy.

' _They thought they could take me on with three COs. Ha!'_ she thought, ' _Even with three heads, they couldn't get their own act together!'_

And now, she watched as Uzume did exactly what she hoped for: diverting some of her own units away to support the fledgling flanks, weakening her own position enough that she could conceivably take it with what units she had left at her disposal.

Blanc eyed the Planeptune Md tanks which remained to block the main route with the gaze of a predator about to make her kill. She gave the command with the swipe of her hand. "All units: advance!"

* * *

Uzume quickly ducked inside the cupola of the Md tank she stood on as the white tanks rushed into direct combat, their forms fading in and out of the snowstorm like some kind of phantom. Before she knew it, they had already arrived at her position and opened fire. Though they opened fire first, their initial shots merely glanced off the tough armor of the Md tanks and none were lost.

Uzume seized her moment. "Return fire!" she roared. At once her Md tanks retaliated, rendering the opposing armor into oblivion thanks to the heavier tanks' larger cannons. As the enemy tank unit was wiped out, another appeared in its place. Without a second of hesitation, Uzume ordered her Md tanks forward, firing off their mighty guns again.

As Planeptune's CO who favored direct combat above all other forms of fighting, Uzume knew what damage could be caused by large imposing armor suddenly punching ahead in a counterattack, especially if up against opponents who were in a lesser vehicle. Lowee's light tanks drove ahead hoping that they'd take the initiative and fire first, only to find hulking purple forms charging right into their faces.

Needless to say, it went as well as one would expect when a car crashes headlong into a brick wall at high speed, except the brick wall could move.

The lead Md tank squadron was busy peppering the enemy infantry with their back-up machine guns until Histoire's voice rang out in Uzume's ear. " _Uzume! Don't push your units too far ahead! Neptune and Nepgear are still barely holding on and the enemy is advancing against them!_ "

Having been caught up on her own affairs, Uzume slapped herself in the head upon realizing what she was doing. She popped her head outside to see that the east and west routes were abound with the sounds of battle, seeing nothing but white: the snow and the enemy units. She quickly gave the order to halt right before one of her own Md tank was finally knocked out as the damage caught up to its endurance. And yet, more of Blanc's units were rushing into view, and through the light blanket of snow and obstructions, Uzume could see the enemy brought their own big boys into the playing field: the boxy, bulky forms of Lowee's own Md tanks.

Uzume cursed as she popped back down into the hatch.

* * *

The artillery unit, which was down to the couple remaining guns, was finally brought down by cannon- and gunfire from Lowee units as they rolled through Neptune's lines. "Awww, man! What'd that poor defenseless arty ever do to you?!" she whined. Over a span of a minute, she and what units she had left were busy being routed. Her tanks were at half-health, one of her mechs on top the hill had been trounced by overwhelming Lowee infantry, and just now, her artillery unit bit the dust. From what she managed to hear, a similar situation was going on over on Nepgear's side and Uzume was just barely holding her own.

And of course, being caught up in all of this, Neptune was also preoccupied with running for her life.

"HELP ME, HISTY!" Neptune screamed comically as she ran along with the rest of her units. But no response came, whether it was due to her not paying attention or simply her being unable to hear with all the ruckus.

"Hey! HEEEY! Taxi-service!" Neptune hollered, chasing after a fleeing Planeptune APC as fast as her two legs could take her through the thick snow. But her request was ignored as the APC continued fleeing away from the frontline as shots rained all over the snow. Gasping, Neptune continued running ragged through the snow, trying to chase after what little remained of her command until one of her last remaining light tanks rolled right up alongside her.

"Gimme your hand!" called the tank commander. Neptune took up the offer by leaping up, clinging to the tank's sleek side armor while the commander helped her up. Shots continued ringing as the tank picked up speed.

Up ahead, away from the invading Lowee forces, Neptune could see more purple-colored troops. The tank zoomed up to meet the reinforcements and Neptune hopped off.

"Woooo-eee! Glad to see you guys!" Neptune sighed in relief. The reinforcements that Uzume sent consisted of a couple more tank units, a couple more infantry and mechs, and one recon unit. This, combined with what she had left (two beat-up tank units, a mech, and an APC) meant that Neptune's effective combat strength should have more than doubled.

… _Should_ have.

One of the troopers sent as reinforcement did a quick salute. "Ma'am! Situation's looking south, but we're under your command. Orders?"

Suddenly, the sight of a Lowee recon unit rolled into view, having moved far ahead of its comrades and now finding itself alone against enemy reinforcements. Sensing the golden opportunity, Neptune dramatically pointed at the enemy unit. "I want you… to beat that guy up over there!"

Interpreting the somewhat vague and informal order, one of the healthy tank units rumbled forward after the enemy recon which tried to skid to a stop and quickly bring their armored cars around. Neptune's tanks caught up to them and immediately opened fire. Somehow, despite the weather conditions brought by Blanc's power and the fact that Lowee's troops should be benefiting from the cold, the entire recon unit went up in a puff of smoke as each cannonshot hit their mark. In a single volley, an entire enemy unit was wiped out.

As the Planeptune soldiers found the time to gape at the miraculous display, all Neptune did was pose with a "V for Victory" sign with her fingers. "Oh yeah! That's just me and my status as the main character!"

" _... what are you... about?_ " Histoire's voice came crackling faintly through the radio, " _I need you to… up and form… fence as quick as you can! There… nearby so you can hold... long enough for -_ "

"Um, what was that, Histy?" asked Neptune, "Say what now? I should whatta-wa?" She smacked her radio hoping it would fix it as it had worked for some game consoles she's interacted with, but no dice. Only the indecipherable crackling could be heard from the speaker.

"Stupid thing..." Neptune muttered. To the side, the thunder of battle continued to rage as she saw more Lowee troops attempting to storm in while straight ahead, more Lowee units gathering for another go at Neptune's forces.

"Um, ma'am?" one of the troopers asked, "Your orders?"

Neptune looked at what she would be up against and thought back to what she had just gone through. A determined look appeared on her face as she turned to face the soldier. "Those dastardly Lowee villains have gone too far!" she declared in a sort-of dramatic tone, "It's time we make 'em regret stepping foot on Planeptune soil. I say we attack!"

A wordless confounded look was the only response Neptune got. "... Ma'am?!"

"You heard me! We're gonna actually attack them!"

* * *

Blanc was pleased with the progress so far. It seemed as though her strategy of blitzing through the inexperienced COs was working. Her units were actively pushing back the Planeptune forces on the flanks while her center spearhead, although they received the most trouble due to the Md tanks and Uzume's direct-combat expertise, continued to make progress. Surely even someone as blunt and simplistic as Uzume has realized how dire her situation would be if she held her ground while the defensive line was collapsing everywhere else.

Blanc smiled as she observed the progress from afar through her binoculars. ' _At this rate, I'll be able to reach their HQ and Planeptune's capital in no time! And then… Only then will I be able to get payback for what they did before! Especially that once I get my hands on that damned -'_

Her train of thought momentarily halted as, when she swung her view to observe one of the flanks, she spotted a peculiar oddity: a purple-colored vehicle in the middle of nowhere. Blanc narrowed her eyes. How'd a Planeptune tank get there? Especially with her own forces in plain sight? As she continued watching, she noticed a trickle of more purple forces filtering through whatever gaps there were in the frontline; some even brazenly rushed past some of Blanc's own forces without even bothering to attack.

All of this made no sense, both tactically and logically. Blanc blinked twice. Was she imagining things? No, they were still there, rushing headlong past Lowee forces and engaging them in close-range direct attacks. In some instances, she watched as those Planeptune units dealt surprisingly devastating blows to her units.

Blanc watched, trying to make sense of it.

"... What're Planeptune forces doing there…?" she quietly asked herself, as if she somehow had the answers. She whirled around to face some of her own soldiers who stood by as her communication staff. They were seeing the same thing and were themselves in disbelief.

"... I SAID WHAT'RE PLANEPTUNE FORCES DOING THERE?!" Blanc shouted, ripping her soldiers back to reality. "U-um, we don't know, commander Blanc! All we got was that they suddenly started attacking out of nowhere!"

Blanc whirled back to watch the highly unusual move. Whoever this Planeptune CO was, she was either a savant or an complete idiot unhindered by basic tactics or common sense. Because the sudden and unexpected attack through her own frontline units, it caused that particular side to waver in confusion due such audacity of their foes and the fact that they were being attacked in more than one direction.

So far, the Planeptune forces, in their bold move, were engaging whatever target they could find: tanks en route to the front, infantry preoccupied with capturing local settlements, APCs, and her own artillery units, defenceless against the unexpected. It didn't really matter if they were winning or not, they simply tried to clobber whatever they could find.

Blanc snatched the nearest radio and map she could find, seething. She searched the map for the closest units she could find. "I want units from here, here, and there to divert and destroy those enemy units behind our lines!" she barked. Blanc knew that this would risk losing what momentum she gained but seeing this… this… _act_ of utter defiance to logic and sense made her burn up inside. No respectable or sensible CO would make a suicidal decision like this!

She continued to monitor the enemy activity. The enemy COs still holding the defense may notice something amiss and exploit it, but that wasn't her concern. She'll destroy them soon enough.


	5. First of Many

The Md tank Uzume was in weaved back, letting a tank round zip past by a hair's breadth before it firing back at the offender. The shot struck a Lowee Md tank smack on its flat turret cheek, knocking it out of commission. Unfortunately, that did not deter the other enemy Md tanks and vehicles from encroaching her position.

"Damn!" By now, the Md tank unit she was accompanying was down to half combat effectiveness while the other Md tank under her command was still relatively healthy. She could back up now to take cover within the settlement that remained under her control, but that meant sacrificing even more ground to the enemy. But against this many enemies and her tanks running low on ammo, she had little choice but to tactically withdraw.

"The Md tank that's with me, regroup at the settlement! The Md tank unit isn't, continue holding them back!" A series of affirmations was sounded as the tank Uzume was riding in lurched back towards friendly lines. The snow continued to fall hard beneath the murky-gray sky. Ahead of her lay the small clump of buildings under their control. There her Md tanks can get resupplied but there would be no time to deal with extensive repairs and reinforcement.

' _Speaking of which…'_ Uzume called Histoire. "Histy! We getting reinforcements?!"

Histoire's voice came through, still calm and comforting. " _They are currently on the way. Just please hold on for a little bit longer. But more importantly, do you see Neptune? I'm unable to reach her and I certainly hope she's not doing what I think she's doing!_ "

"Neptune…?" Uzume turned to face the flank that Neptune and her forces should be but to her shock and surprise, found nothing purple there. She quickly brought up her binoculars, silently hoping that her eyes were playing tricks on her.

But alas, she found no Planeptune units where Neptune was supposed to be.

"What the -?! Histy, I can't see Nepsy or her units!"

" _What?!_ " shouted Nepgear, the sounds of battle on her end rumbling in the background of her transmission, " _Oh no, please don't tell me she -_ "

" _Nepgear!_ " Histoire sternly interrupted, " _Please remain calm. I just wanted to confirm where she was and… oh dear._ "

"Huh? What're you getting at?!" Uzume demanded, "What's she doing?"

" _... She's gone on the offensive._ "

The comms channel remained dead quiet for a good few seconds, with the faint sounds of battle and the howling wind in the background. After those few seconds passed, only one word blared out from both Uzume and Nepgear's side.

" _... wwWWWHAAAT?!_ "

* * *

Everywhere she looked, she only saw white: the snow-covered terrain, the snow on the trees, the snow in the air, and of course, the Lowee units that were all over the place.

"Yeah! Take that you snow-lovin' hooligan!" Neptune shouted from atop one of her own tanks, pumping her arms into the air and being oblivious to the crossfire she was in. "You thought you can invade Planeptune and get away with it?! You may take our lives, but you'll never take our pudding!"

"Ma'am, would you _please_ take cover?!" begged the tank commander exasperatedly. It was bad enough that Neptune roped everyone into the suicidal stunt of hers and up to this point, the tank commander had given up trying to convince her CO otherwise. And with Lowee units all over the place, she had much bigger concerns right now.

A Lowee artillery unit attempted to run away while one of Neptune's infantry unit that somehow managed to keep up without being wiped out sprayed it with gunfire. A few Lowee light tanks returning from the front moved to help knock out a Planeptune APC before it quickly offloaded a bazooka-wielding mech unit from within. A settlement which was formerly Planeptune's was being contested between the occupying infantry and a damaged recon unit.

Everywhere one looked, it was mayhem, with purple and white running around doing what damage they could while not being wiped out in the process. So far, it seemed as though the enemy advance was faltering due to this move, as troops expecting to roll to the frontline found themselves unexpectedly having the front come to them while units that were at the front were being turned around to deal with the audacious Planeptune troops.

It was also that around this time that the snow slowly began to stop falling.

* * *

"... I don't believe this!"

" _Unfortunately it appears to be the case,_ " continued Histoire, " _But somehow, it seems to be working. I can see that the advance has stalled._ "

Uzume peered out from her tank to find that, indeed, the enemy advance was slowing down. The enemy units that they were up against were attacking less, as if they were losing confidence. She and Nepgear were no longer being pushed back as some of the Lowee units were being diverted away.

By some miracle, their assault was definitely losing steam. ' _Ugh… I still can't believe it!'_ Uzume mentally complained. Of all the things a rookie could do, it was something that was wholly dangerous and insane.

And yet, the proof was right there: the enemy front was slowing down.

Which was certainly fortunate as Uzume's other Md tank unit was battered and bruised, down to only a couple functioning vehicles. The unit she was attached to was in a similar condition but there would be no time for repairs.

"Alright, there's no time for any repairs, so here's what we're gonna do: the unit with me is going to join up with the other on ahead! You Md tanks out there are going to be part of my unit now!" The tank rumbled forward, all fueled and stocked up back towards the action. Uzume's tanks rolled up alongside their peers. The unit leader from the other unit had appeared from the hatch of her Md tank and acknowledged Uzume's command with a quick thumbs-up before popping back down inside.

"Gearsy, how're you holding?"

" _So far, I think we're managing,_ " Nepgear replied, sounding a little bit relieved, " _But what about Neptune? We got to do something!_ "

Before Uzume could say something, the channel was interrupted by Histoire. " _Good news, everyone! The reinforcements are now arriving! And what's more, it seems that the snowstorm is starting to subside._ "

"Really?" Uzume gasped as she looked skyward. True to what Histoire said, the air was no longer seemingly hostile with the cold and the snowflakes that bit their skin. Now, the wind held still.

Blanc's storm was coming to its end.

As she watched, the faint sounds of treads, wheels, and even rotor blades rumbled behind her. Turning to face the source, Uzume was greeted to the sight of more purple-clad soldiers, land vehicles, and even the rocket-armed B-copters.

" _Whoa! Histoire really delivered! I-I can't believe it!_ "

Uzume cracked a grin as she watched their reinforcements arrive. "... Remind me that I owe you one, Histy."

" _I appreciate the sentiment,_ " Histoire replied, " _I've assigned all of them under your command. Please use them to the fullest._ "

"Oh that I will!" Uzume declared. She turned her attention back to the where Blanc and the Lowee Army, along with Neptune, lay. "Gearsy, hold position. 'Cause I'm goin' in!"

Uzume called forth her Share reserves, and with her divine powers, granted to each and every direct-combat vehicle under her command her strength. At that moment, it seemed as though every gun and armor became the manifestation of Uzume's fighting spirit, now uninhibited.

"Alright, you bozos! Let's do this!"

* * *

The longer Blanc observed the actions of the daring Planeptune troops, the more her eye started twitching. Despite being surrounded and in danger of being overrun, they refused to go down quietly, taking on whatever Lowee military hardware they could clobber. Reinforcements to the front were being diverted, the process to capture local settlements as outposts were being halted, her artillery was being threatened…

Everything about what they were doing sorely grinded Blanc's gears, not because it was irritating, but because it still a highly foolish move! And yet, whoever ordered it was getting away with it! The hard-won lessons and experience from her days past of a CO was all being invalidated in the face of sheer stupidity! Stupidity and dumb luck!

"How are they not dead yet?!" Blanc demanded. Already, she had to pull out some of her indirect units and transports out of the way and bring in units from the frontlines. She knew this would stall their advance into Planeptune's capital, but there was no way she was going to let this no-name CO ruin her supply chain with this stunt. As she watched, she caught a glimpse of one of the light purple-haired girl that was identified to be one of Planeptune's new COs. Just looking at her acting all brave with that dumb face of hers made Blanc steam up even more. The sooner she crushed them, the sooner she could show them the futility of their illogical move.

"Um, ma'am?" a Lowee trooper hesitantly asked, "It appears that the snow has stopped."

"What…?" Blanc looked away from the action and realized that, indeed, the snow had ceased falling. Although the temperature was still cold, it was noticeably getting warmer. The winds that carried the frost had already died down, and the sky no longer looked ominous.

' _Argh!'_ Blanc cursed. Without the blizzard, she would no longer have the upper hand that her tactics benefited from. ' _It might be a little while before I can summon another one, so in the meantime -'_

"Commander Blanc!" another soldier shouted, "We have a situation: Planeptune reinforcements have arrived and the enemy's begun their counterattack!"

"WHAT?!" Blanc cast her gaze to the main route where she last saw Uzume guarding and to her shock, found a purple battering ram of an armored assault punching the tickets of her Md tank unit. Uzume's tanks barreled down the route, quickly firing off their guns as they charged through with speed and ferocity that no ordinary Md tank was supposed to accomplish. Before Blanc knew it, her own Md tank was neutralized, ground to scrap by Uzume's CO Power.

"Get an artillery to fire upon them!" Blanc growled, "Whatever tank that isn't already busy with the rear and is healthy, delay their counter-advance as much as you can!" But then Blanc heard the sound of helicopter rotor blades and saw the B-copters and immediately, her heart sank. Enemy vehicles were pouring through all routes, quickly crushing their opposition like a plumber squishing a mushroom beneath his feet; combined with the continued presence of Planeptune troops behind their lines, the Lowee Army was facing the possibility of a rout.

There was only one left for her to do. Blanc snatched the radio. "To all units: withdraw immediately! I repeat, withdraw immediately! Disengage and make your way to safety as soon as you can!" As she stopped transmitting and she watched as the white-clad units of all shapes, sizes, and combat effectiveness visibly turn to head away from the enemy, all Blanc could do is think bitterly.

' _Dammit! This battle could've been mine! I had it! I was_ so _close!...'_ But alas, Blanc could only stare in the direction of Planeptune's capital, its iconic tower just in the distance seemingly taunting her with how close she came to her goal, only to be denied her prize.

Her personal command team began hastily packing as a white APC parked idly by, waiting for them. Blanc was about to turn to retreat with her army until from a distance, she caught a glimpse of fiery-red hair that brazenly stood out from the battlefield.

Blanc saw her, and so did she. In that instant, Blanc's emotions erupted back again as she angrily shouted at her. "YOU! You and your stupid turd-faced newbies got lucky today, but this isn't over yet! Lowee will come back and we'll make you..."

Blanc pointed a finger straight at Uzume. "... we'll make you pay for what you did to my nation, Uzume! I won't ever forget it! MARK MY FREAKIN' WORDS!" A Lowee trooper dragged her off before Blanc could say another word in open view of the enemy. And with that, Lowee presence vanished from the field.

All that remained were the Planeptune Army. Neptune had hopped off of her tank and before she knew it, she was tackled in a hug by Nepgear. "Neptune! I'm glad you're alright!"

"Course I am, 'lil sis!" Neptune cheerfully replied, "I have the power of plot armor by my side!"

Off to the side, Uzume couldn't help but smile a bit watching those two. But she also couldn't help but wonder what Blanc was talking about. Her, having attacked Lowee in such a way to make Blanc angry enough to launch an invasion of Planeptune? Since when?

She brought her radio up. "You got all that, Histy?" she asked.

" _Indeed, I heard everything,_ " Histoire replied, " _And I'm as confused as you are. There shouldn't have been any military op sanctioned by us ever since we signed the truce with Lowee._ "

Uzume rubbed her temple. "Ugh. Well I don't have any clues or idea."

A brief moment of silence hung between the two, before Histoire spoke again. " _Please return to headquarters along with Neptune and Nepgear. There will be much to discuss._ "

* * *

 _-PLANEPTUNE MILITARY DOSSIER-_

 _COMMANDING OFFICER: Uzume  
_ _REGISTRATION #: PN11271998_

 _CO ABILITIES:  
_ _Direct-attack vehicles are more effective; indirect-fire units are weaker_

 _CO POWER:  
_ _Firepower and speed of direct-attack vehicles are increased_

 _HITS: Cool things  
_ _MISS: Shiitake mushrooms_

 _NOTE(S):  
_ _Based on what I've seen, commander Uzume is second to none when it comes to direct attacks, be it land, sea, or air. Her given CO Power amplifies her preferred tactics further, even enabling those units to move even further than what's normally possible. But of course, this may unfortunately be a by-product of her taste for more… simplistic things deemed "cool", as her favoritism for direct combat has allowed her to neglect the art of indirect combat and anything more complex than "roll something huge and powerful right up to the enemy's face and blast them point-blank". Unfortunately, attempts to have her try to address her shortcomings always end in failure and further disinterest. On the other hand, Uzume seems aware of her weakness, so it's a start.  
_ _As she gravitates towards anything she considers "cool", Uzume is quite outgoing and extroverted, with a fiery personality. She seems to have no room for much subtlety or sophistication (which could help explain her preferred tactics...) but above all, Uzume is fiercely loyal and helpful to any and all of her companions. There may be times when she can be pushy and stubborn, but in the end she ultimately pulls through to help out a fellow Planeptune CO in need. Also, I don't recall any other person who can shout or yell as loud as she can (for that reason, along with her boisterous personality, she's taken the liberty of becoming the Planeptune Army's drill instructor)._

 _-Histoire_

 _Ooh, hey hey! Can I write stuff on this? I just want to leave a quick review for 'ol Uzume here.  
_ _Ahem. I wish to address the fact that during training, she spent minutes on end yelling and hollering right in our faces, whether it was goofing off, not paying attention, not answering her questions like what we should do in a given situation, what stuff is, or what the proper term for "applying forceful momentum towards the soft hindquarters via the swift velocity of a boot" is. At worst, she would sometimes use her megaphone to yell at us, even when she didn't need to!  
_ _Also, I'd like to mark her for violation of Nep Law #45, Section A: spilling perfectly good pudding in front of poor Neptune because she tried to sneak it in her footlocker.  
_ _2 out of 5 stars, would not want to train with again!_

 _-Neptune_


	6. The Second Job

_Dear Diary,_

 _So Nep Jr. and I just got our first taste of what being a CO was like!... Well, I certainly didn't expect for it to snow like that all of a sudden or that our opponent would be so cheap as to focus on us because we were newbies! Hadn't that Blanc or whatever heard of difficulty scale?! At least wait until we leveled up or something!_

 _Anyways, Uzume and the two of us had to head back to HQ for what Histy called a "debriefing", whatever that means. (I hope it's not a boring lecture...) Once we arrived, it was the usual quick congratulations, "good job", "well done", blah-blah-blah. Then Histy started scolding me on what I did back then, then Uzume joined in! So what if I almost got busted out there, how was I supposed to know that?!_

 _Anyways, Histy brought us back because of what Blanc said, something about accusing Uzume of doing something to her country, I dunno. I can certainly accuse Uzume of being pushy and yelling at us during field training, which apparently meant that she couldn't have done what Blanc claimed. (For once, Uzume and I agreed on something!) But 'ol Histy's gonna keep investigating, see what really bad cornflakes Blanc had this morning._

 _But in the meantime, Histy says that the two of us need some more experience and got more work for us. More work! I really feel like I could use a good pudding right now..._

 _-Neptune_

* * *

 **Somewhere in northeastern Planeptune**

"... Man, I could really use a good pudding," Neptune whined for what appeared to be umpteenth time.

Right beside her, Nepgear patted her shoulder. "It can't be all that bad. Let's try to get this done then we can head back, is that fine?"

Instantly, Neptune became all sunshines and rainbows as she smiled. "Oh, Nep Jr., you sure know how to please me! Let's beat this with a high score so we can celebrate with a victory serving of pudding!"

Nepgear smiled at her older sister's sudden enthusiasm. Food encouragement certainly worked at times. But as she glanced at the map, she realized she herself could use some encouragement. ' _I wish Uzume was still with us...'_

But no matter how much she wished, it couldn't change the fact that Uzume was not with them in this mission. Ever since Histoire decided to begin an internal investigation to verify Blanc's accusation, Uzume had been ordered to remain in headquarters as part of it. Everyone knew that Uzume had been busy instructing Neptune and Nepgear, so she had an alibi. But even if Histoire believed it, she had to order Uzume to remain behind for questioning as part of "procedures".

And in the meantime, Lowee troops were occupying a small Planeptune city in another part of the nation. As their next assignment, Histoire had sent Neptune and Nepgear to rendezvous with local Planeptune forces and liberate that city and the area around it.

And right now, Neptune and Nepgear were assigned to direct a convoy of APCs, all loaded with various soldiers along with the usual stockpile of supplies. The nearby forces they were meant to rendezvous were in need of supplies and some reinforcement. As of now, the two sisters sat in the backseat of a Planeptune recon jeep, all enclosed with angular sides and of course purple like all things Planeptune.

From what Nepgear could tell by looking at their map, the region outside the city was quite a frontier, with vast forests and mountains. It was afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set. But the skies and environment remained clear.

" _Neptune? Nepgear? Do you read?_ " The radio crackled. Neptune quickly snatched the receiver. "Roger, Roger. What's your vect-, er, um… what's a word that rhymes with 'Histy'?"

An audible sigh could be heard from the radio. " _Please do try to take this seriously, Neptune. Besides me, the two of you are on your lonesome; you won't have the luxury of a veteran CO helping you for this mission._ " The words brought discomfort to Nepgear. She already knew the fact but hearing it again didn't help put her at ease.

" _Anyways. Just as a reminder, your objective is to direct the convoy to Planeptune forces nearby in the forest. Once you've accomplished that, I will explain the next phase of the mission._ "

"Um… right," Nepgear replied.

Even though she wasn't present in person, it seemed that Histoire managed to pick up on it. " _Is there something wrong, Nepgear?_ "

"What? No, it's just that, um..."

" _I can assure you that you did what you could last time, especially for an emergency,_ " Histoire soothed, " _But do not worry, here's a bit of good news: now that there's time, you two should be able to proceed and learn at a more comfortable pace._ "

As she thought about it, Nepgear realized that Histoire had a point: their very first trial by fire was most definitely an extraordinary situation for someone just training to become COs. But out here, there was no threat of imminent invasion, no threat of pressure or enemy assaults on their position. For now, it was calm, peaceful…

Relaxed.

Nepgear took a deep breath which was almost ruined when Neptune gave a playful slap on her back. "Don't sweat it, lil' sis! Long as you're with me, we'll ace through it!"

" _Speaking of 'acing' through it,_ " chimed in Histoire, " _I certainly hope that you try to be more sensible, Neptune. The unexpected offense you did was quite exceptional, but please don't make it a trend._ "

"Oh c'mon!" joked Neptune, "What's a little excitement here and there?"

A long exasperated sigh could be heard from the radio. " _... Remind me to have Uzume drill some sense into you when she's available…_ "

* * *

The APCs drove through the clearing in single file, their trail illuminated by the sole headlights of the lead vehicle. By now, nighttime was starting to settle, shrouding the forest in darkness. Although this was supposed to be more calming and leisurely than the defense of Planeptune, Nepgear couldn't help but be more unnerved than usual. Despite riding in a recon vehicle that came with an onboard sensor that sought out all enemy signatures beyond their natural sight, Nepgear remained over-alert as she saw nothing but the dark inhabited only by her imaginations.

Sitting next to her, Neptune merely yawned. "... I'm feeling tired. Please don't tell me we'll have to beat up the enemy when everyone's supposed to be asleep."

"Well, I'd be tired too, but this forest is kind of giving me the creeps," Nepgear sheepishly admitted. A little talk here and then lightened the mood, which she found grateful. She glanced back at the map as she tracked the 2D images of their convoy rolling through the woods to their intended destination, the grid coordinates relayed to the lead vehicle a minute ago.

Between monitoring their progress, looking outside into the darkness, and exchanging small talk with her sister, all Nepgear could do was think back to how they did fighting alongside Uzume. Their training was not wholly complete, but Nepgear felt that she was somewhat ready back then. She had the basics of unit movement, positioning, and combat learned, and yet…

Nepgear shook her head, trying to dispel the thoughts away. Like Histoire said, they both did what they could in such a situation. It wasn't some pop quiz or bonus lesson in which the participants knew deep down that they would make it out relatively unscathed; that battle back then was the real deal.

' _Hmm. Maybe I'm thinking too much about what I could've done better,'_ thought Nepgear. Then she yawned. ' _... That or I'm just as tired as Neptune.'_

Before she knew it, the radio squawked, with the lead vehicle reporting that they had arrived at their destination. Her eyes zipped back to the map and indeed, they had arrived. The map then made known the presence of friendly Planeptune infantry and assets.

"Neptune, wake up. We're here!"

* * *

Upon exiting the jeep, the two acquainted themselves with the local troops, who all saluted as formalities. The APCs went to work unloading their cargo and supplies right beside curious large mass hidden under camouflage tarps. Understandably, this caught the COs' attention and curiosity.

"Hey, what's hidden under those tarps?" Neptune asked as she approached. Though the covering was large, she could see bits and pieces of whatever it was hiding. Something… with treads.

"Some kind of tank, maybe?" Nepgear guessed.

The soldiers walked all around the same masked form before they pulled the tarp away, revealing the true nature of what was underneath: an armored box-like ground vehicle with a small but noticeable turret. But what also caught the attention of the two sisters was the main armament: a large rotary Gatling gun.

"Whoa, so I guess it is some kind of tank!" exclaimed Neptune, "Your deduction skills was quite spot-on, Ms. Detective!"

" _I hate to break it to you, but it's not quite right,_ " the radio buzzed with Histoire's voice, " _That is actually what's called an anti-air vehicle. As its name implies, it is specialized for attacking aircraft, though it can be used quite effectively against lightly-armored ground targets if necessary._ "

Neptune and Nepgear looked at the anti-air with astonishment. "So, um, why were they there?" Nepgear asked as she looked at other anti-air units being unwrapped by the APC crew.

" _We've actually had a few units stationed here for quite some time,_ " answered Histoire, " _They were meant to be maintained and resupplied, but we never quite got around to it. And now that the war has started again, I thought there would be no better time than using them. From now on, they'll be under your command for the rest of this mission._ "

At the sight of all the new units, Neptune twirled in excitement. "Oh yeah! New toys to try out, woo-hoo!... So, um, what exactly are we going to use them for?"

" _You'll see. But that can wait until the next day. Until then, please get some rest - the second phase of the mission begins tomorrow morning!_ "

* * *

 **The next day…**

" _Is everything ready?_ " Histoire's voice buzzed through the radio. Looking all around her, Neptune saw a handful of anti-air units all armed and ready to go, their Gatling cannons already pointed towards the clear blue morning sky. Near them, several platoons of infantry and mechs were deployed, their weapons at the ready as everyone cast their eyes in the direction of one objective: the city.

"Ready and steady, Histy!" Neptune cheerfully responded. " _Everything's good to go here, too!_ " Nepgear stated through the radio.

" _Splendid. Let's go over the plan one more time._ " Histoire cleared her throat before she continued. " _Lowee is occupying the city and the surrounding region. Though Blanc's advance had been stalled, this has allowed the Lowee Army to consolidate their position as well as bring in their aircraft. We have confirmed reports that Lowee aircraft is operating in this region to defend the territory._

" _Our attack will be two-fold: the infantry and mechs led by Nepgear will head towards the city to recapture it while the anti-air units under Neptune's command will fend off the enemy occupation force and aircraft. It is crucial that the infantry be well-protected to expedite the capture process. But more importantly, the enemy aircraft must be neutralized if we are to win!_ "

"Right!" the two sisters chanted.

" _When you are ready, please advance towards the city. Speed will be of the essence: they will very likely detect your approach and immediately dispatch their aircraft._ "

Sitting on top an anti-air vehicle, Neptune eagerly rubbed her hands in anticipation. "Allll righty then! Let's roll out and kick some Lowee tail! Full steam ahead!"

" _Please do try not to endanger your units like last time,_ " Histoire sighed, " _Needless casualties would look bad for your Technique rating..._ "

* * *

Within what was once a small Planeptune city, the flag of Lowee flew high over every head. The streets were filled with white-uniformed soldiers and trucks moving to and fro from one end to another. The patrols were diligent, making sure that the native population were monitored and kept in check of any dissent. Fortunately, it was a rather sleepy part of Planeptune, and as the rules of war dictated, the soldiers did their best to perform acts of conduct. Likewise, the civilians were rather docile. As far as anyone was concerned, life in the city was all the same - just under a different flag and filled with unfamiliar soldiers.

And as far as the soldiers themselves were concerned, it was another dull day of sitting around in the city, counting the clouds or the ducks.

"Sitrep?" a Lowee soldier half-heartedly asked.

"Situation normal," replied another, "Today's forecast: another boring day. Tomorrow's forecast: another boring day."

Everywhere else, more Lowee troopers idled around, hoping that something could break the monotony.

"I'll see your three dogoos and two gems and raise you my four chocopis and one cartridge."

"Hey, has anyone seen my game console? I'm sure I left it there..."

"Man I should've transferred to another branch..."

"Hey, you heard about what happened to commander Blanc's offense? Dunno what happened but the Planeptune Army somehow drove her back."

"Wow, really?"

The bored murmurs became interrupted by the arrival of a messenger who arrived on a jeep. "Alright, everyone listen up. Got word from HQ! We're to move out and link up with commander Blanc's forces!"

Everyone sat and stood up upon hearing the news. Instantly, the murmurs became more excited as everyone was relieved for potential action, whatever it may be.

Around that same time, the alarms went off throughout the city.

"... Attack! We're under attack! Scramble the aircraft immediately!"

* * *

Even as the city landscape came within view, both Neptune Nepgear could sense that the enemy was alerted to their presence. The group of vehicles rushed towards the city at full speed, entering the city limits as the passengers quickly disembarked from the APCs. By now, the Lowee occupation forces had already been mobilized and were now waiting for them. From here on, it would be nothing but urban combat, with both sides having roughly equal advantages in the terrain chock-full of cover.

"Okay, these infantry and mechs will move ahead in this part of town!" Nepgear quickly ordered, "Neptune's anti-air will protect us, so try to focus on recapturing as much of the city as you can!"

"Righto, lil' sis!" added Neptune who was riding on top of the lead anti-air vehicle, "Like she said, we'll swat the planes out of the sky and whatever else is wearing white that tries to mess with us! This'll be easy-peezy like lemon squeezy so let's do this!"

The Planeptune forces all went their ways as ordered. The anti-airs revved their engines to charge forward to guard the infantry until Nepgear called for Neptune, forcing her to stop and look.

"... Be careful out there, okay, Neptune?"

Neptune cocked a grin and gave her sister the V-for-Victory sign. "Don't you worry your pretty head, Nep Jr.! As I've always said before, I got luck on my side!" And with that, she rolled off down the street. In the meantime, Nepgear hopped into one of the APCs that then drove after the infantry to accompany them, content to observe and direct the scene from safety.

The map showed real-time display of purple units filtering through the city streets. Though it was labeled a city, the place felt more like a large suburban town, with the buildings being no high than a few stories. From what she remembered, only foot soldiers dealt with the capturing of property thanks to their ability to enter buildings and all sorts of nooks and crannies that any vehicle couldn't enter. The infantry and mechs went to work, going from sector to sector, methodically reclaiming the city bit by bit. They would tear down whatever Lowee flags or influence they could find and replacing them with Planeptune ones and go to all the residences announcing their presence to the citizens.

' _Oh, I certainly hope they won't get hurt with us here,'_ worried Nepgear. With all the skirmishes and conflicts that went on in Gamindustri, it eventually became accepted among civilians that war was another part of daily life and thus were rarely fazed. A strict convention regarding conduct at wartimes also dictated that civilians were to be undisturbed provided they weren't actively getting in the line of fire.

She watched as her infantry got to work retaking the city, their progress represented by a visual animation. If everything went well, it was likely that they would be able to recapture the city within a day. Movement on the map caught her eye and Nepgear saw 2D sprites of enemy units moving towards her location - infantry and recon. Around the same time, she saw friendly anti-air units headed to meet them.

" _This is Squad 3 here: we've secured this sector!_ " The radio crackled to life as a flurry of voices came forth, all of which from her infantry reporting successful captures.

"Good work!" complimented Nepgear, "Please make your way to the other parts. Be on the lookout for the enemy!"

" _Roger that!_ " confirmed multiple units simultaneously. Then, a familiar voice came out.

" _Captain Nep here! We've just ran into the enemy! Gonna nep 'em good!_ "

"Um, okay! Stay safe out there, sis!" Nepgear replied. The only reply she heard were the clattering of combat in the background. A quick check on the map confirmed what she suspected: Neptune's anti-airs had just opened fire.

* * *

 _*BBBRRRRRRRRTTTT!*_

The loud ripping sounds from the Gatling cannons were all that Neptune could hear as her anti-air unit opened fire. The Lowee defenders, comprising mostly of infantry, were caught off-guard and swiftly took cover as best they could. In an urban environment like this, there was plenty of places for them to hide behind, but against such ferocious firepower they were helpless.

An almost literal stream of tracers ripped threw the air, cutting a telephone pole and lamp post like a tree. A white armored car that was foolish enough to skid to a stop in the middle of street was swiftly dealt with. This was no contest - the Lowee defenders had no chance without reinforcements. Between attacks, Neptune could see their enemies making their way back the way they came from as discreetly as they could.

"Woo!" Neptune sighed in relief, "Almost lost my hearing with all that!"

"You'll get used to it, ma'am," replied the anti-air's gunner. Checking her surroundings, all Neptune saw were the city buildings and other anti-air vehicles of her own unit; the others were elsewhere, presumably having a similar experience.

" _Everything okay, Neptune?_ "

"Sure, sure, everything's okey-dokey!" Neptune reported playfully.

She could hear Nepgear sigh in relief. Her little sister can be such a worry-wart sometimes. " _Oh, thank goodness. The capture process is going smoothly and… Neptune! I see their aircraft approaching!_ "

Neptune cast her eye skyward and indeed, the clear blue skies became host to a cluster of white speckles. Though they were far away, she could hear the faint whine of their engines as they came closer. Lowee reinforcements - their aircraft that was their key to defending this region - had arrived on schedule.

"Uhhhh, what kind of aircraft are we talking about?" asked Neptune who tried to squint to examine the oncoming aircraft.

" _They are confirmed to be a squadron of B-copters and bombers,_ " stated Histoire, " _They are meant to defend this city from anyone who wished to capture it. Neptune, remember: focus your anti-airs on the approaching aircraft! Specifically, I recommend you focus on their bombers!_ "

"Ehhh, really?" Neptune fussed, "They're flying quite high unlike the, um, B-copter things."

" _Don't worry, your anti-air weaponry can reach them. For now, just protect Nepgear's infantry as best as you can!_ "

"Roger-dodger, Histy!" Neptune proclaimed, even throwing in an impromptu salute (not that Histoire would even see it). "Everyone, let's go clip their wings!"

And with that, the anti-air units all rolled forward through the city streets to intercept the white birds.

* * *

 _A/N:  
_ _HistoricHippos:_

When it came to the _Advance Wars_ games, one of the things I couldn't really wrap my head around was the scale and the consistency of that scale (Cities that're 1-tile large? Days to travel from point A to point B? A hometown being as big as an entire map?). Granted, it was for gameplay purposes but trying to adapt that into non-interactive fiction would be rather difficult. So from this point onward, assume that every instance of a city is much larger, large enough that multiple infantry or mechs will need to capture them, one part at a time (it shouldn't take them 2 whole days to capture a property unimpeded).

Also, this will likely be late news, but the "maps" that the characters look at from time-to-time are supposed to resemble the UI interface of the _Advance Wars_ games (square grids, color terrain, 2D sprites of the units stationed at the grids, etc.)


	7. No-Fly Zone

**Lowee Army Field HQ, somewhere in north Planeptune**

Blanc sat alone in her cabin-like office. Truth be told, it was more like a mobile home trailer crammed with all the luxuries that a CO could ask for along with Blanc's personal belongings. The last part was why she refrained from making a field tent her home away from home.

And right now, she was busy reading. Ever since the last disappointing battle, Blanc felt like she could really use something to calm her down. During downtimes, she enjoyed literature, preferably works of fiction. And now that the war against Planeptune seemed to be in a lull, she figured there was no better time than to revisit her hobby of trying to pen her own story.

' _... Perhaps it can be about… a princess? Princess of a kingdom and she has…? I'm not sure. So a princess who ruled over the kingdom, living a peaceful life until… when she was away on the countryside, came back to find her kingdom burnt to the ground by an infernal dragon, but the dragon fled before the princess could retaliate, then she manages to rally the kingdom's people to her side to hunt down the dragon and -'_

Blanc stopped herself then her expression darkened. ' _Ugh. Dammit! Why am I basing it off of what happened?! I'm trying to find an escape from life so why am I finding myself basing it off of real events?!'_ She sighed exhaustively as she slumped over the paper-ridden desk.

' _... It was her, no doubt about it. I saw it! I saw her face! Yet she had the audacity to play dumb with me!'_ Blanc sighed again as thoughts of vengeance stirred within her. ' _... I won't make the same mistake again. This will be the last time Planeptune decides to backstab me with their so-called truce! I'll defeat Uzume, get my damn hands on her, then I'll drag her ass all the way across the -'_

The door suddenly opened. "Commander Blanc? We have a -"

The Lowee soldier was met with the sight of her commander staring angrily right in her face. "What is it?! What do you want?! Can't you see I'm busy here?!" she barked. The trooper could only stare in fear as she cowered from the towering rage from someone who was actually shorter than her.

"U-u-um, I apologize, commander! B-but there's a situation developing in northeastern Planeptune!" Without further ado, she stuck the report paper in front of her, which was promptly snatched by Blanc who had just begun simmering down.

She read the report and by doing so, her temper began sparking again.

"Send in reinforcements! Don't let them capture that city so easily!"

* * *

Planeptune anti-airs zoomed past the asphalt roads towards the incoming Lowee aircraft, ignoring the local garrison that held the city from the Planeptune Army. As Neptune watched, the wind brushing past her hair and face, the enemy targets were coming a lot closer. She could now physically identify their shape and form - all white like the nation they fought for. From what Neptune remembered, anti-airs were direct-combat units thanks to their cannons which held immense rate of fire but were hamstrung by range. And since the approaching aircraft were also direct-combat units, it was a matter of being the first to attack.

Lowee bombers, their wide forms casting a shadow over the ground, came flying close in a three-unit formation, each unit comprising on only one bomber each. They flew closer and closer until…

The anti-airs slammed to a halt with Neptune almost rocking forward. But this was the moment.

"Okay, work your magic!" she announced. Immediately, all the Gatling cannons in the unit she was in elevated their barrels up high towards the sky and fired. The innocent blue sky which was only muddled with the arrival of enemy aircraft became even more blemished with the sounds and sight of a hundred tracer rounds streaking through the air.

The lead bomber, the one in the center of the formation, was hit hard by the concentrated fire as the hull became peppered with holes and one of the engines began smoking. Then out of nowhere the bomber exploded mid-air, causing the other two bombers to break formation. The anti-airs swerved their cannons towards one of them, but it zoomed past before any one of them could get a bead on target.

"Get the other ones!" Neptune ordered through the radio. Immediately, other anti-air units in other parts of the city opened fire, filling the sky with even more tracers. Though the bombers were caught in the crossfire thanks to their ungainly agility and size, they still managed to remain airborne albeit shaken and in no way capable of fighting. They circled back in the direction they came from, taking care to avoid more anti-air fire.

"All right!" cheered Neptune, before the thumping of rotor blades interrupted her. She turned to see Lowee B-copters approaching, all clumped in formations of five copters per unit and flying much lower than the bombers before them. The B-copter unit closest to Neptune flew in close, firing off their payload of rockets at her anti-air.

Before they could swivel their cannons to meet the new threat, the rockets reached their targets, their ordnance knocking out two anti-air vehicles in Neptune's unit. Then the remaining three vehicles returned the fire, swatting a good chunk of the B-copters out of the sky. But before Neptune had time to catch a breath, more Lowee B-copters threatened to approach her position.

With her unit down to about half-strength, Neptune conveniently began to feel a little less confident. "Um! Head back to the others!" The tracked vehicles ran down the road in the opposite direction, while Neptune immediately began issuing orders to her other units.

"Okay, you guys try to shoot down as many of those copter things as you can! Whoever shoots down the most wins a free pudding!" On the map, Neptune watched as her fellow anti-airs moved along the city streets, chasing after the enemy B-copters, their Gatling cannons more than suitable for the task.

" _Neptune, how are you holding up?_ " Histoire asked.

Neptune watched as her unit finished off another B-copter unit that was taking fire from another friendly AA. "Oh, you know me. Just another day of being an aspiring career CO!"

" _Nepgear is about halfway in recapturing the city. Please keep it up!_ "

"Will do, Histy!" Neptune's anti-air swerved around the corner to find itself unexpectedly face-to-face with a Lowee infantry squad who were just as surprised as she was. The troopers fired their rifles out of reflex before they all collectively realized what they were up against and decided to book it out of there. The Planeptune anti-airs returned fire in a rather disproportionate way after the retreating infantry unit.

Neptune's radio crackled once again to life. " _Neptune! My infantry are coming under attack by the enemy! Do you think you can help out here?_ "

Neptune quickly regained her bearings as she made her decision. "Okay, I'm headed over. Over and out!"

Her anti-air unit rolled down the street, the tearing sounds of Gatling cannons and the light cracking of gunfire echoing all over the city. The map showed the entire city filled with both friendly and confirmed enemy forces. Glancing at it, one could clearly see where the frontline was based simply on where both sides were concentrated the most. As it currently stands, about half of the city was indeed liberated. But the other half remained in enemy hands and the firefights between opposing infantry was impeding the capture process - time spent fighting off the enemy was time not spent actually liberating the city after all.

Neptune's vehicle burst forth into what appeared to be the city square where infantry from both sides were busy taking potshots at each other from buildings. Quickly spotting where the enemy were, the anti-airs turned to face down the Lowee units with their cannons. Knowing they were beat, the white-clad troops pulled back, leaving the purple forces the victor of that skirmish.

"Ma'am!" called the gunner of the anti-air vehicle Neptune was riding, "We've burned about half of our ammo."

And as if on cue, similar reports came streaming through Neptune's radio. " _AA Unit B here, our combat effectiveness is still looking good but we're starting to run dry ourselves!_ "  
" _This is AA Unit D, splashed some copters but we're being tied down by hostile ground forces. We're also running light on ammo!_ "  
" _AA Unit C, we're still good on ammo though we had enemy B-copters get the drop on us a couple times._ "

" _Neptune! I think more enemy aircraft are approaching!_ "

Neptune could only sputter in face of the flood of incoming calls. "Whadda-whadda-wha?! What do you mean there's more coming?! And where exactly am I supposed to find more ammo to?"

" _Relax, Neptune,_ " a familiar voice reassured, " _Try to think through this one step at a time._ "

Neptune blinked. "... Histoire?"

The voice continued. " _First, your units are starting to run low on ammo; the anti-air guns do use them up rather quickly. There aren't any bases or facilities nearby to help restore your units' supply, so what's the next best thing?_ "

Neptune scratched her head. Being asked questions like that harkened back to her training days and needless to say, she didn't like those type of questions (especially if they involved studying from books and had pop quizzes). Her mind tried to grasp at what the answer could be but feeling pressured, she could only draw up a blank.

" _Neptune!_ "

The yell made Neptune jump in surprise. "Huh?! Nepgear? Why -" The sudden appearance of a Planeptune APC driving close to Neptune caught her attention as it stopped and opened the main rear door, revealing an interior devoid of troops that it carried but rather -

"... Ooooh, I get it!" exclaimed Neptune once she connected the dots. Of course! She and Nepgear had just witnessed their APC convoy replenishing the anti-airs' supply yesterday!

"That all makes sense now! You're so smart!" praised Neptune as the APC crews quickly haul the appropriate ammo for the vehicles, "I knew I could count on you, Nep Jr.!"

It didn't take a genius to imagine that Nepgear was blushing as she made her reply. " _Um… thanks._ "

" _... Though if you had paid better attention, you would've realized the answer yourself,_ " Histoire chastised, " _Now please make sure your other anti-airs are resupplied before you take on the next wave of aircraft. Keep the APCs close and well-protected and you shouldn't have to worry about supply problems for long._ "

" _Um, by the way,_ " interjected Nepgear, " _I'm sending you some of my APCs to help you out. Please take good care of them, Neptune!_ "

"Oh I will!" Neptune replied with a wide smile. Confidence surging, she brought up her map. Her other anti-airs were spread in other parts of the city, either engaging the remains of Lowee's B-copter battlegroup or mopping up the defending infantry. Neptune quickly queued up orders.

"O-kay, you guys! I need you to regroup here, here, or here where an APC-thingy will be waiting for you. Try to hustle because I don't think they'll like waiting!" A quick series of affirmations reached her. Satisfied, she turned to her own unit.

"Let's head back to the action and show 'em who the skies belong to!"

A series of energetic calls and replies answered as the vehicles zoomed forward.

* * *

 **Planeptune Army HQ**

From the security and comfort of the capital headquarters, Histoire kept close watch of the current operation. So far, everything was going smoothly: Nepgear was steadily retaking the small city and bringing it back under Planeptune control while Neptune was doing a good job of clearing the skies. No doubt the Lowee invaders had already reported the situation as the swift arrival of their aircraft demonstrated, but thankfully, this particular region was at the extremities of the enemy advance so there was little risk of the main Lowee Army arriving.

Regardless, speed was still of the essence. Any time spent dilly-dallying would be a chance that Lowee brought in more reinforcements that could jeopardize the whole operation.

And as luck would have it, more enemy contacts entire the map display. Glancing quickly, Histoire saw that they were more of the enemy aircraft: more bombers, B-copters, and now some T-copters.

She reached for the radio. "Neptune! More enemy aircraft have entered the battlefield. More bombers, B-copters, and a few T-copters! Just like last time, please intercept them before they can attack Nepgear's infantry!"

" _A-o-kay!_ " came the overly-cheerful reply. Histoire watched as purple contacts winded through the city streets towards the enemy.

In her mind, she always painted Neptune to be the irresponsible one for someone with the title of a CO. Unlike Nepgear who is more sensible, Histoire found it difficult to believe that Neptune could be the elder sibling. Though that did make Histoire wonder: as all COs had particular abilities and powers, she was curious as to what Neptune and Nepgear's would be. At the risk of showing favoritism, Histoire was more comfortable awaiting Nepgear to discover her potential; the Planeptune Army couldn't certainly refuse any potential talent among their ranks (provided it wasn't already being squandered).

The notification that contact was made snapped Histoire back to the mission at hand. Speculating what specialties the two have can wait for now; there was a battle - and a war - to win. And as foolish Neptune may be, there was no doubt that she would win this skirmish.

* * *

More anti-air fire cut through the air, slicing through the sky as well as the fuselage of the Lowee bombers. Now fully resupplied, Neptune's anti-air unit focused their fire, but the bomber remained intact despite the damage. In fact, the white bomber even braved the fire to drop a bomb on top of the offending anti-air. The lone bomb fell through the air with a whistle, but luckily it fell to the side of one of the anti-air vehicles as it shook from the explosion but was still combat-capable.

"Whoo! That was close," Neptune remarked. The same bomber flew overhead, limping through the air and trailing smoke. The other bombers flew past where Neptune was.

" _This is AA unit B. We're refueled and resupplied! Going after the bombers now, over!_ "

"Alright!" Neptune checked her map to see her other anti-air units pursuing the enemy bombers, now energetic in their duties thanks to a fresh resupply. The ones that weren't engaging the bombers were currently being resupplied by the APCs under her command. Despite the relatively fast pace of the situation, the troops were quick and efficient in their resupply duties and before Neptune knew it, her anti-airs were rolling back into the fight.

Over in the distance somewhere to their twelve 'o clock, Neptune turned to see a unit of Lowee B-copters swatted out of the air by mass tracer fire, the scant survivors fleeing rather than stay and fight. Further into the distance, she spotted a flight of a few elongated helicopters, their white forms cumbersome and unarmed but still denoting itself as an enemy.

"Okay! Get those too!" The vehicles quickly turned and went after the T-copters. Neptune's anti-airs grinded to a halt once they parked themselves below the copters' flight path and opened fire. If the B-copters were like paper before anti-air fire despite their combat role, then the T-copters had the physical durability of wet tissue paper. Their unarmed nature made the job even easier as the anti-airs had no fear of retaliation fire. Out of the three in the air, one was already blown out of the sky. Despite this, the remaining T-copters continued to fly past (though this time a little faster than usual) towards the direction of Nepgear's infantry.

Neptune snatched the radio. "Someone get after the other two T-copters!" The sounds of nearby explosions briefly interrupted her as a unit of Lowee B-copters that had remained perfectly intact in the initial engagement had turned up to attack one of her anti-air units. Though they had the first strike, the B-copters were swiftly cut down by the retaliation fire. Despite this, the affected anti-air was visibly damaged.

Worse still, one of the T-copters had touched down somewhere close to Neptune's position, and from what little she saw, the occupants were the bazooka-armed infantry.

"Okay, not really a change of plans but still a change of plans!" Neptune announced through the radio, "Let's engage those mecha thingys before they do some trouble!" Both her unit and the damaged one close-by immediately responded by rolling swiftly towards the direction of their target. Rolling through the streets, small movement from a nearby building caught the gunners' attention.

"Eat this!" Streams of cannon-fire cut through the building and judging by the sudden outburst of small rockets sailing towards them, they had found the mechs. One of the rockets struck a glancing blow in one of the anti-air vehicles, shaking it but leaving only a blackened dent on its hull, while another smacked directly into the turret of another vehicle, causing smoke to billow out. Fortunately, that was all the damage that the mech unit would do.

Neptune looked around. The unit she was attached to was still damaged from earlier, and the other unit that was with her was about half healthy. As if sensing what Neptune was pondering, Histoire chimed in. " _In case you were wondering, you can merge two damaged units of the same type together to form one unit. Doing so ensures you have a unit that's at maximum combat effectiveness._ "

"Oh, yeah. I totally knew that!" Neptune beamed. (' _Doubtful,_ ' thought Histoire.) "Alright, you anti-airs over there get the honor of joining the Nep Club, so come on over!" The Planeptune anti-airs in question did as they were ordered and linked up with Neptune's, though whether they did actually become members of the Nep Club would remain unanswered.

Now confident with her reformed unit, Neptune scanned the horizon. The other T-copter was nowhere to be seen, presumably disappeared in the midst of the fray. But what Neptune could see was how little the skies were filled with white-clad aircraft.

" _Neptune, look! I think the enemy is retreating!_ "

True to Nepgear's words, what little aircraft that remained all flew seemingly away from where they were. On the ground, Neptune could make out brief shapes of Lowee troopers making a mad scramble out of the city, following the aircraft.

"WOOHOO!" Neptune cheered loudly, even hopping clear out of the turret, "Take that, Lowee! Check yourself before you wreck yourselves! Or rather, _we_ wrecked yourselves! Oh yeah!"

On the other end, Nepgear simply sighed and let herself slump down in her seat. She was content letting Neptune and the Planeptune troops celebrate; for her, she was just grateful that the mission came to successful end.

* * *

With the sun starting the set, the quiet town that had just seen a battle take place returned to its sleepy state, with the sounds of battle now faded and the sky clear of Lowee flags. The townspeople, sensing the battle's end, all cautiously made their way out of their homes to fill the streets to be greeted to the sight of their Planeptune liberators. From atop a purple-plated vehicle, Nepgear and Neptune clambered on top, megaphone in hand.

"Helloooo, Planeptune!" Neptune shouted, her voice amplified by the megaphone, "The Planeptune Army arrived to save your bacon! Now you shouldn't have to worry about foreign soldiers, snow, mushrooms, or snow tax! Long as we're here, you shouldn't have to worry about all stuff anymore, so hip-hip-hooray!"

Neptune threw her arms up in celebration, expecting the motion to be imitated by at least some people but instead, found herself in a rather awkward situation as the crowd of civilians that gathered remained quiet. Rather than celebrate, they seemed rather apathetic at best, unsure at worst.

Now that her ploy failed and she still remained in the spotlight, Neptune's confidence began to waver. "Umm… nobody's glad? No cheers, 'woopee', 'hooray', or… anything?"

The civilians all looked at one another, glancing at the collateral damage and the soldiers that filled the streets. Although liberation had arrived in their city, it did not change the fact that wars were a frequent occurrence throughout Gamindustri, and that cities and other residences all over the land were always caught in the crossfire. At some point or another, soldiers would roll up and erect their flags over a city or property and the people living there simply dealt with it; after all, thanks to the conventions of war civilians never really felt endangered by foreign occupation. Sometimes, a single city would change hands multiple times in quick succession, so plenty did their best not to feel too attached to current events.

Unenthused, the crowd slowly dispersed in all directions to resume a quiet, quaint life in the city as they've always had. But somewhere among them, a single voice called out.

"... Yay?"

* * *

 **Somewhere in northeast Planeptune**

From the electronic tablet in her hand, Blanc sat in the backseat of a command vehicle, fuming. The reports did not look good: a large town in the fringes of Planeptune that had recently been occupied by Lowee forces had just been repelled and the once sleepy town that was supposed to be an easy picking was once again in Planeptune hands. As Blanc had been busy focusing on advancing towards Planeptune's capital, she had been unable to take direct command of the town. And right now, she had just been en route to the scene in person when word came that the battle had been lost, with the sight of decimated air force and troops to show for it.

' _Ugh! Of course the defense would have fallen - whoever was in charge relied too much on having our aircraft do the job! Of course the enemy would notice that and counter it!'_ Blanc let the tablet fall slightly back in her hands as she glared into empty space. ' _If I was in charge, none of this might've happened!'_

Blanc continued to fume about the circumstances for another minute before she forced herself to take a deep breath and clear her head. ' _... Whatever. It's just a town in the middle of nowhere. It shouldn't be a huge loss. One stupid city isn't going to make that big of a difference; we can always recapture it later. All that matters is getting closer to that capital!'_

Blanc was about to shut off the tablet until an on-screen notification halted her action with an annoyingly cheerful ringtone. "Oh what is it?" she grumbled as she tapped the icon with her finger.

The screen then turned black for a second until it revealed a moving image. Suddenly Blanc realized that it was a video transmission sent via secured Lowee channels. But what surprised her was who she was now talking to.

" _Blanc, are you doing okay over there?_ " A sweet and concerned voice asked.

Blanc narrowed her eyes. "First off, Rom, why're you calling me? I'm in the middle of something here."

On the screen, Blanc watched as her little sister, dressed in the formal Lowee Army uniform tailored specifically for her short size adorned with epaulets that were across the collar and sleeves as well on her peaked cap, nervously fidget. " _I was just worried about how you were doing. I heard that something bad happened and… well, I was just -_ "

"Forget it," Blanc interrupted, "It-it's just a small setback. Planeptune troops managed to deny me a quick victory and right now I just lost some no-name town to the enemy and -"

" _Is that Blanc?_ " Another voice rang out outside the video screen. Rom turned to an unseen person, but Blanc know who it was just by the voice. " _Lemme see her!_ " Suddenly, another girl leapt into the transmission window as Rom hastily scooted aside to let in the new visitor.

Blanc sighed in quiet frustration. "Ram, what did I tell you about manners -"

" _Come on, Blanc!_ " Ram argued hotly, her disposition a clear contrast to her sibling despite near-identical appearances. " _We know that something's not right! And when something's not right, then that means you're having trouble! So why not let us help you?!_ "

Blanc snapped a quick light glare at Ram. "No way! Out of the question! You don't have enough experience to successfully lead some of the army against Planeptune! All you'll do is make a mess of things or waste resources!"

" _Oh yeah?! And why is it that we don't have enough experience despite us being COs?_ " Ram snapped back, " _Rom and I both learned how to be Lowee COs just like you but you rarely give us any chance to us what we learned!_ "

In the background, Rom tried to assuage both of her siblings but her meek nature meant that her pleas and presence went unheard and unnoticed as the argument continued.

"Well that's because you're better off being at the rear!" Blanc argued angrily, "You're much better off staying at headquarters so you can help support the war effort! The battlefield isn't the place for you two to do that, you know!"

" _Well that's boring! I'm getting bored just sitting around back home just so me and Rom can convince people to help the army! And then all our work of getting all the funds we need get sent to you and you only! If you ask me, Blanc, you're the one making a mess of things and wasting resources right now!_ "

Silence fell. Though it was quiet, the lull was tense and uneasy as both Blanc and Ram settled to glare at each other. Her tight gripping on the tablet, Blanc felt she could break it in two in her anger. Anger that stemmed from pain she felt from the last point. Was there a grain of truth in Ram's words?

No, it couldn't be. The war was still very young, there's a way for Blanc to turn this around in Lowee's favor. After all, what did her little sisters know? The two of them haven't commanded enough battles to criticize her, what right did Ram have?

Blanc was about to turn the tablet off in frustration until she noticed Rom gently nudging Ram aside, taking her place at the video transmission while Ram silently sulked in the background. From what Blanc could see, the argument had taken a toll on Rom as well, as she bore a sorrowful expression.

" _Um, big sis?_ " Rom timidly began, " _Can you… please listen to what I have to say? It-it's just that I'm… er, we're worried about you._ "

"... Worried about me? Is that it?" Blanc muttered in a tired tone.

" _It's more than just that, Blanc! You're Lowee's top CO… but you're making it feel like you're Lowee's only CO. We all know how hard you're working over there, just like you've been every single time. But please, Blanc… you don't have to do everything by yourself. We know you're the big sister and all, but we're your little sisters. We just want to help you, so please give us a chance._ "

Brief silence fell again but this time there was a more hopeful feeling in the air. Blanc glanced to the side into nothingness, contemplating. To be entirely truthful, Blanc felt sapped of strength from all the work and especially after her argument with Ram. Her exhaustion gave her impetus to seriously consider her sisters' offer and intention now that she couldn't do anything other than think and reflect.

' _... So she's caught on to it, huh? She's realized how I took command of the Lowee Army so often I was basically Lowee's only CO. Even though both Rom and Ram passed officer training and were qualified, I didn't want them to take command… Because I was afraid… Afraid they could be hurt. I thought having them stay back and do the easy stuff would be my answer, but all that did was put all the work on myself...'_

" _... Blanc?_ " By now, both sisters were anxious to hear from their older sister as she turned to face them again.

"... Alright, you guys win." Blanc sighed. Her answer was met with a cheer on the other end. ' _I guess they really wanted to help me out, did they?'_ she thought as she listened to them. Blanc decided she needed to establish some boundaries before they get too excited.

"But first, I need you two to promise me one thing..." The jubilation died down as the two settled down to listen. "... Just… be careful out there, alright?"

Rom and Ram responded with a playful salute. "You got it, big sis commander!" said Ram before the two fell over giggling.

Blanc could only groan at their humor before she shut off the transmission link, leaving her with a blank screen. She peered outside and saw the evening sky, the horizon bathed in warm orange that was fleeting against the dark blue sky. There were a few more hours until nightfall but Blanc felt sleepy. Grabbing her personal radio, Blanc made the order to return to the field HQ and make preparations.

There was much work to be done in awaiting their arrival. But it was all good - pulling most of the weight was the duty of a responsible older sister after all.

* * *

 _A/N:  
_ _HistoricHippos:_

I don't know about you, but I'm picturing Rom and Ram dressed like Colin from _Advance Wars 2_ but with a different uniform color. Probably ditch the pants for a skirt but you get the idea.


	8. New Challengers

**Planeptune Army HQ**

"Glad to see that you've arrived back in HQ with a job well done."

Neptune beamed. "You know it! Nepgear and I went and kicked some serious A over there! Against the main protagonist such as myself they never stood a chance to begin with!" She put her hands on her hips, the pose eliciting smugness so thick it could be tank armor. Beside her, Nepgear could only smile embarrassed at the display.

Histoire sighed. "... You could at least give me some credit for the victory. But moving on..." She paused as she picked up a Histoire-sized stack of paper stapled together as a report. "For your first solo operation, you two weren't bad at all. You both worked well in tandem as the operation dictated and despite minor hiccups along the way, you made sure the mission went swimmingly."

Histoire flipped a page then continued. "As you may have guessed, I have been evaluating your performances. Both of your Speed and Technique rankings are stellar and, for Neptune in particular, your Power ranking is excellent." ("Alright!" cheered Neptune.)

"In all honesty, I'm being a little lenient as you are still Planeptune Army novice COs, but please don't use it as an excuse to be careless!" stressed Histoire. She then flipped to the next page as she cleared her throat. Whatever she had to say next was important. But before she could say a word, the door to the meeting room burst open and all eyes turned to see -

"Uzume!"

The fiery-haired CO strolled in with a cocky smile. "Hey, what's up Gearsy? Nepsy?"

Neptune's eyes widened as she saw Uzume. "So hold on. If she's here, then that means..."

"The internal investigation on commander Uzume has been finished with an inconclusive result," Histoire reported. "Her alibi was spotless and we have found absolutely no evidence that she could have gone and done what commander Blanc accused her of. Even if Uzume had gone AWOL, the movement of an entire army group to conduct an overseas invasion would have no doubt been noticeable."

"So does this mean she's off the hook?" inquired Nepgear. "She's free to go?"

"Of course, she will return to action immediately," confirmed Histoire. "With no evidence found, it's possible - however improbable - that Blanc may have been making random accusations to justify a sudden declaration of war. Speaking of which, we will need Uzume on the field as soon as possible to help drive back Lowee."

"Hell yeah!" proclaimed Uzume as she cracked her knuckles, "We've still got unfinished business with those snow-heads! What say we crank up the heat and stick it to 'em?"

"Ooh, ever excited are we, little Uzume?" Neptune teased. "I'll let you know that we did a fine good job out there on our own just now! Just me and Nep Jr. versus the world!"

A light punch to the shoulder came as a reply. "Ha! You're on, Nepsy!"

"Ahem!" All heads turned to meet Histoire who still had the tiny report in her hands, her expression slightly miffed at the lack of focus. "There are still an important topic I would like to touch upon in this report that pertains to our two rookie COs."

A surprised stare came from Neptune and Nepgear. What could this "important topic" be? Now that she had gotten their full attention, Histoire continued. "As you may already know, every goddess of Gamindustri has the privilege of becoming a commanding officer of their nation's military, and every goddess has access to the mystic Share energy that only they can use. The very resource that all of Gamindustri is competing over is also the source of a CO's power in battle. Do you remember how commander Blanc was able to summon a snowstorm during your very first battle? Or how commander Uzume was able to greatly influence the firepower and speed of her units? Those are two such powers."

Neptune and Nepgear murmured, following along, and Histoire continued. "Now, the other COs you've met are all experienced; they have fought enough battles to not only adopt a particular tactic but also their own unique CO Power. As you two have only fought your second battle, your CO Powers have yet to manifest."

Nepgear's hand flashed up. "So, what exactly do we have do to gain our own CO Powers?"

"Oh that's simple," Uzume butted in, "just keep doing what you're supposed to do! More battles you fight, the more Share energy you get because the soldiers and people get to know you better. Sooner or later, you'll get enough Share energy to get your own CO Power!"

Neptune tilted her head quizzically. "Okay, but how do we know what kind of CO Power we get? I don't want anything that's lame or boring like, uhhhh… Well, I hope I roll a good one!"

"Well, that's a great mystery that we may never be able to decipher," replied Histoire, "At best, one's CO Power depends greatly on the commander's personality or current ability. And speaking of ability, your evaluations were not only to grade your performance but to also determine what particular tactic or style you'll adopt - see what works for you and what doesn't."

"What works and what doesn't..." Nepgear softly repeated.

Histoire nodded and was about to continue before the door was barged open again and this time, a uniformed Planeptune trooper rushed in to hand Histoire a sheet of paper. As Histoire skimmed through the report, her eyes started to widen.

"It appears that the Lowee Army is making another move. And this time, it appears to be a full-scale assault!"

* * *

 **Somewhere in northern Planeptune**

The whites of Neptune's eyes widened as she saw the map. "W-w-w-what?! Where'd all these units come from?"

"No idea Nepsy," Uzume replied as she stood next to Neptune. Her tone devoid of fear; if anything, she seemed a little excited. "But what matters is that we'll find a way to clobber 'em!"

Next to the two, Nepgear remained silent, gazing at the enemy's battle formation with a worried look. Companies of white-clad ground units carpeted the open fields north of their position. With this many enemy units arrayed against them, the mere thought of fighting them all made her heart sink.

The radio squaked. " _Well, I wouldn't have put it that way, but yes, we must find a strategy,_ " said Histoire, who remained back at the main headquarters. " _The enemy outnumbers us so we must play our cards right._ "

"B-but what do we have?" Neptune whined. "All we've got is whatever me and my sis brought along from our last stunt!"

" _Indeed, that is a major problem,_ " Histoire answered cooly. " _But I would like to direct your attention to this spot on the map._ " Right after she said that, a specific grid on the map lit up with a blinking glimmer. Within the mark, lay a certain icon which denoted a facility. At first, Neptune and Nepgear noticed that it belonged to no flag despite it being well within Planeptune territory. But the next thing they noticed was that whatever the building was, it was unlike anything the two have seen.

"What is that?" Neptune asked.

Before Histoire could reply, Uzume beat her to the punch. "That's what we call a base. It's supposed to be a facility of sorts where any CO who's in control of one can call in whatever land unit she wants."

" _Provided she has the funds and proper amount of requisition for it, of course._ " Histoire added. " _Normally, it would take me quite some time in order to send you reinforcements to help bolster your defences. But with a base, additional units can arrive much sooner and in a more convenient manner._ "

"Ohhhh..." the two sisters responded with fascination. The radio squaked again as Histoire continued. " _Furthermore, there's a river that runs through the map, drawing a clear line between us and the enemy. The only way through that river is a single bridge. The enemy may have numbers, but they won't be able to cross one bridge all at once, meaning we can fight them all on more even terms._ "

Uzume cracked her knuckles. "Alright! Sounds like a plan!" Then, unexpectedly the cavalier attitude dropped as she glanced at Neptune and Nepgear. "... Soooo, who's gonna take charge?"

"Three-two-one not it!" Neptune joked.

A light smack to the shoulder was Uzume's response. "You wish! Hey Histy, I nominate Nepsy here to take charge! Let her do all the work for once."

Uzume (and incidentally Neptune) turned to Nepgear and was about to (jokingly) ask her opinion on who should take to the field when she saw Nepgear fiddling with her radio with an oddly serious expression.

"Uhh, Gearsy?"

As though a switch had been flipped, Nepgear woke up from her trance with a start. "Oh! Um, sorry. I was just… thinking. Thinking about what else we could try using to our advantage and the first thing I thought about was to hack into the radio."

"Hack into the radio…?" Neptune repeated. "Is that even a thing?"

Nepgear nodded. "I thought, since everyone talks on their own frequency, I could try to figure out what it is and listen in. That way, we can hear everything that our enemy is saying and plan accordingly!"

A cheeky, devious smile spread across Neptune's face. "Ooooh, my that's just _dastardly_ my little Nep sis! Thank heavens for that little brain of yours to come up with brilliant plans!"

Despite Neptune's enthusiasm, Uzume frowned. "Errr, I don't know," she said with uncertainty. "Tapping in other peoples' communications… eavesdropping... just ain't my style."

" _Well, I must say, commander Uzume,_ " Histoire chimed in. " _I'm certainly glad to see one of our novice COs taking the initiative. Can't say the same for the other..._ "

Nepgear continued fiddling with the radio controls, fully concentrating on her work. Twisting the dials and knobs, she listened intently to pierce past the white noise and buzzing for something discernible. Ever gently and methodically, the numerous channels were scrutinized until finally, something other than silence or static came through.

" _... an… get t… everything… ay?_ "  
" _Ye… ood to go!... this, Ra..._ "

Neptune's eyes widened. "Wow, is that really -"

She was immediately silenced with a swift hush from both Nepgear and Uzume as the former ever-so carefully fine-tuned the signal into more decipherable speech. The voices continued, filtered by static, but as Nepgear managed to clear the signal, the voices began coming through clear as day.

" _... Yep! I think we got everything we need, Rom! With this many, there's no way those purple jerks could beat us!_ "  
" _Hm, I don't know, Ram. I just hope we don't run into that Plutia..._ "  
" _Oh relax! Big sis - er, I mean, commander Blanc said that she should be far from here and that Planeptune's got two new COs who probably can't tell a difference between a tank and a sheet-metal outhouse, so we might be facing them!_ "

Neptune and Nepgear exchanged confused looks before glancing over at Uzume. Surprisingly, she seemed to be quietly chuckling.

"Hey! What's so funny?" Neptune demanded, making sure to be quiet so as to not sure that her voice wasn't accidently transmitted to their enemy (thankfully, Nepgear took the liberty of unplugging the mic beforehand). Uzume stifled another laugh before she caught her breath enough to answer.

"No, no," reassured Uzume as her hand waved away any misunderstanding. "It's just that I happen to know who's talking!"

" _Indeed,_ " added Histoire. " _Judging by the voices, tt's definitely confirmed that the enemy forces on the field are being led by Rom and Ram - Lowee COs._ "

"Whaaaaat?!" Neptune fussed. "Two more of them? At the same time?!"

" _Allow me to quickly debrief you for a moment, Neptune. Rom and Ram are the little sisters of Blanc and they're recognized COs like her. Although they're twins, they seem rather inseparable, sticking together wherever they go. But it's not what you initially suspect, Neptune. Despite the fact that the two of them_ technically _have more experience than you and Nepgear, they are still rather inexperienced. And because they stick together, their commanding style means that they might as well be one individual CO. (Though being little children, I don't blame them.)_ "

A thoughtful look spread across Nepgear's face as she pondered, digesting the new information. "So despite there being two COs, we're still only up against one?"

"Bingo, Gearsy," confirmed Uzume. "They might have two brains but that doesn't mean a thing if they do everything together. And since they're, well, kids that 'ol Blansy keeps babysitting, they should be about as skilled as you two."

Neptune clapped her hands together in anticipation and a carefree smile bore on her face. "Alright! So we just gotta take that factory-watchamacallit, make sure they don't cross that river, and do all of it with an easy boss for some well-deserved smooth-sailing! This should be easy-peasy lemon-squeezy for you, Uzume! As a senior commander, please don't embarrass yourself in front of us!"

" _Ahem!_ " Histoire's sudden curt cough caught everyone's attention. " _I think this operation will be a good learning experience for Neptune here._ "

A proverbial lightning bolt struck Neptune. "... Whaaaaaaat?! Are you neppin' with me right now?!"

" _For starters, you and Nepgear need to learn to be more independent; neither me nor Uzume can hold your hand forever, you know. In addition, both of you need more experience, not just to prove yourselves as worthy Planeptune COs but also to develop your own commanding style and powers. With a war going on, your education is all the more important - moments in which you can fight an easy opponent will be few and far in between!_ "

While Neptune held her shocked expression and Nepgear had a concerned look as she felt that Histoire's explanation was meant for her as well, Uzume merely crossed her arms and remained at the side. A rare, thoughtful look was on her face as she considered Histoire's reasons. Finally, she cocked a small grin and was now back to her normal self.

"... Looks like you got volunteered, Nepsy. And as _your_ senior commander, you better not embarrass yourself in front of us!" And with a playful laugh, Uzume gave a friendly slap to Neptune's shoulder and walked away.

Neptune had no idea how long she had been standing there, rigid with shock from the turn of events.

* * *

From atop of the sleek angular turret of a light tank, Neptune tried to study the map spread before her. What units she had were mostly the ones carried over from their previous operation, though the enemy was confirmed to lack aircraft this time. A few infantry and mech units, an APC, an anti-air, and the light tank unit that she was riding with were all she had under her command.

Her forces occupied the far end of the map. Casting her eyes toward the opposite end of the map lay the carpet of white units, the 2D sprites all bunched up into a white blob. Alongside infantry and mechs, Lowee had brought in their own tanks, recons, and APCs; all of which grossly outnumbered her.

Even thinking about it now, Neptune was still feeling irked at the fact that she suddenly and forcibly got volunteered for this. ' _Okay, okay...'_ she thought, forcing herself to focus. ' _Just like what Histy said: gotta play my cards right! Now if I was the main character, what should I do?'_ As mentioned before, Neptune found the base that was some distance northeast of her, its location marked by a simplified drawing of what looked like a stereotypical factory.

The radio by her side squawked. " _Neptune, remember: capture the base and make a defense by the bridge. This is your first solo operation, so please remain calm and think things through one step at a time._ "

Neptune breathed before she snatched the radio, eyes still glued to the map. "Okay, listen up! This infantry here will go get that base while the other infantry go capture anything that isn't purple or has pudding! Everyone else, full steam ahead right in front of the bridge!"

The tank beneath Neptune lurched to life and if it weren't for her grabbing onto something, she would've flown off. As expected, her units mobilized according to the plan, with most of her infantry elements diverting to capture the base while anything that rolled on wheels or treads zoomed towards the expected front line at haste. As the tank unit rolled down the long stretch of open road, Neptune caught a glimpse of the base in person. Seeing a trio of smokestacks poking towards the sky, Neptune could really see that it really resembled a factory. From what Histoire said, it was something that could allow her to deploy additional units, though how the facility accomplished that Neptune had no clue. But if it did what she think it did and help win her this battle, she sincerely hoped it could make pudding.

Up ahead, Neptune saw the river that stretched far across both horizons, the pure stream of blue funneled by the steep pebble and dirt banks. From what Neptune could guess, the river was wide enough for boats to comfortably sail through (not that there were any ships to prove it).

And arching over the river, above the nature that was the water and the riverbank, was a sole artificial steel and concrete lane that reached far across the river. Beyond the open road that was once nature's way of separating the land was the vast open plains that led straight to northern Planeptune, the skies cloudy and foreboding.

The Lowee forces under a different CO (or two) were out there somewhere, and Neptune was going to have to take them head-on - all of them.

* * *

"... So we'll take these tanks over here and we should have them move all the way over there!"

"Yeah! With that many tanks, they shouldn't be able to do much! And maybe have these tanks and APC-thingies come in after!"

Ram beamed at her sister. "Glad we managed to get all of these units! We may Blanc's little sisters, but the people of Lowee can't resist adorable ones, especially when they ask for help. Well, whoever's in charge, there's no way she can fight off this many units, not unless she can buy a bunch of 'em for cheap!"

A Lowee armored car rolled up, with a soldier hopping off to perform a quick salute to the two sisters. Though the two were goddesses and officially recognized as commanding officers, the scene of a soldier showing respect to those about half her height and better dressed would be quite an odd sight to see.

"Ma'am! Preparations are all complete and we are ready to move out!" reported the soldier.

"Yeah!" Rom and Ram cheered, high-fiving each other. Then, in unison, the pair turned to face the towards the direction their army would take - the direction of where they would expect the Planeptune Army. Striking an accusatory finger in that direction, the two chanted their declaration.

"We of the Lowee Army proclaim this today!"  
"That our homeland shall not be taken, that we say!"  
"Through snow or fire!"  
"All methods to bring our enemy's ire!"  
"Prepare for trouble!"  
"Make it double!"  
"Ram!"  
"Rom!"  
"The white sisters see victory in sight!"  
"Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

And with that, the proverbial glacier now rumbled into action, their treads thundering across the fields.


	9. Base Case

"Commander Neptune! Enemy armor spotted advancing 12 o'clock!"

Neptune scrambled herself back into attention as she hurriedly brought up her binoculars. True to her gunner's words, the Lowee tanks were visible, their white paint job making them stick out of the natural Planeptune landscape clear as day. They were charging forward in a wide formation as if to cover as much literal ground as they could. From what Neptune could quickly count, there were about two unit's worth of enemy tanks against her one tank unit and anti-air.

"OK! Everyone, get ready to nep 'em up as best you can!" All turrets and guns swung over in unison to point at the open gap that was the bridge. Neptune continued to observe the white tanks, watching as they maintained formation and speed towards the bridge. Surely whoever was in charge was aware of her presence?

The Lowee armor continued their drive forward as they began driving over the bridge, completely exposed and apparently oblivious to Neptune's troops. And as they were almost right within spitting distance…

"Let 'em have it!" Neptune shouted. At once, anything coated in purple opened fire, bringing tumultuous thunder in the Planeptune plains. Immediately, a good chunk of the Lowee tanks met their end in the surprise attack, being felled by Neptune's lone tank unit. Her anti-air unit, though unsuited for anti-tank work, pestered their targets with a barrage of fire, even claiming some of the kills.

The remaining white tanks all lurched to a halt, dawdling idly in confusion. Beams of tracer fire from Neptune's anti-airs continued to pelt the Lowee tanks and one-by-one, they turned their guns in the tracers' direction, finally discovering the purple vehicles positioned by the riverbank. The tanks from both nations opened fire at the same time, yet the return fire by Lowee did little thanks to the superior cover of Neptune's units and their dwindling numbers.

What little Lowee tanks remained operable turned heel and ran, smoke now accompanying dust behind them as the enemy departed.

The Planeptune troops cheered at first victory and Neptune was among them. But on the other end of the radio, Histoire, Uzume, and Nepgear didn't share the sentiment as they watched the map. Neptune had only drove off a sliver of the total enemy force and the base that would be instrumental to her victory still remained uncaptured.

As the glacier of enemy units inched closer and closer to Neptune's position, all present knew there was more to come.

' _Neptune… please stay strong!'_ Nepgear pleaded worryingly.

* * *

The preliminary reports suddenly changed tone as they came through and the forward units returned all battered and damaged.

"What...?! How'd Planeptune get their forces that far ahead?" whined Ram.

"I'm not sure," Rom murmured with uncertainty, glancing at the map of the battleground. "They must have noticed us coming pretty early, or they somehow moved faster than we expected, or -"

"Alright, I get it!" Ram sharply interrupted. Snatching the map from Rom, Ram immediately started queuing orders. "Okay, so since that bridge is the only way across, we'll just move everything over there! We'll get the tanks and whatever vehicles we have over there first to try to batter through!"

"Um, r-right!" Rom grabbed the radio. "All units, please head over to the bridge at, um, right there! But unless you're a tank, don't cross it just yet! Please hold position by the river until we can break through them!"

Their orders were answered with overlapping confirmations as the Lowee army mobilized accordingly. Although the troopers all diligently obeyed their directions, the army as a whole appeared more like a militarized mob; when the move order was given, lax formations were adopted with the individual units intermingling as they made their way. But despite the subtle display of unprofessionalism, Rom and Ram took no notice. Rather, they marveled at the sheer numbers they brought.

"Look out, Planeptune!" exclaimed Ram with as much confidence and bravado as she could. "Here comes Lowee!"

* * *

Neptune checked her map. The capture display only indicated that the infantry she sent to capture the base was only half-way through. They would need more time to bring it under her control. Peeking at the units she had with her, it was clear Neptune was going to have to do an undesirable task: she was going to have to buy time (which meant she'd have to actually work).

" _Neptune, listen! You've got more enemy units approaching your position! More enemy vehicles!_ "

Neptune flinched with a start at suddenly hearing Histoire's voice crackling from the radio. "W-w-w-wha…?"

She could ask, but she heard - no, _felt_ the distant rumbling off into the distance. Looking to the horizon, Neptune could see blocks of white kicking up plumes of dust behind them. Enemy tanks, recon, and APCs as far as the eye can see.

Neptune ducked down low in the tank she rode on; similar motion was made by the other Planeptune soldiers around her as they braced for another skirmish. Neptune quickly checked what she had: an anti-air unit and tank unit, all with adequate ammunition and combat effectiveness. Her two units against who knows how many on Lowee's side.

Neptune scrambled for the radio. "Okay, everyone! Pucker up and get your game faces on! We've got to make sure we hold them off as long as we can!" A chorus of immediate, but nervous, affirmatives replied.

Across the river bank, the congregation of white assembled. Spying them from across the distance, Neptune could see them, some in plain sight while others were partially concealed by shrubbery or by each other. Both sides were outside combat range, but as Neptune watched them, she could feel that they could see her. A tingling sensation crawled down her back at the thought.

The enemy army amassed across the river crowded the bank and among their numbers, a squadron of light tanks filtered their way onto the bridge. As expected (of reliable sidekicks who can do the thinking for her), the bridge acted as a barrier that forced the army to approach as a trickle. The swarm of various Lowee vehicles and infantry held position, almost as if waiting their turn to cross and try their hand against Neptune.

Just like last time, a squadron of enemy tanks rolled across the open bridge. And like last time, the Planeptune defenders waited. The Lowee tanks rolled closer; a barrage of cannonfire greeted them. Once again, the Planeptune Army scored first blood, but this time the Lowee interlopers would not fall so easily. They returned fire, their shots pelting the land around their purple counterparts. A near-miss here and there, but once in a while a shot would find its mark and a Planeptune vehicle would now be belching black smoke.

Another trade of blows and the enemy retreated. Taking a breather, Neptune quickly assessed the damage: her unit was now short one tank and one anti-air vehicle was out of action. So far, not too bad.

She quickly glanced at her map. Her infantry was nearing the capture of the base and would soon be bringing its facilities online. ' _Just a little longer…!'_ Neptune thought with unease. Even from afar, the Lowee Army intimidated her with their numbers. A second later, Neptune saw another handful of more light tanks rolling through the bridge.

Neptune ducked low into her tank as the enemy column rumbled closer and closer. With a seemingly unending tide of white behind the next group of tanks ready to fight, it didn't take a genius to know that this situation could only end one way.

"Uhh… Could really use some reinforcements~!" Neptune nervously sang.

* * *

Rom watched the next skirmish afar as the next tank unit engaged the Planeptune defenders. Right now, it was going about as well as the previous two: casualties were piling up and despite what damage they were able to inflict, the enemy defenses still held.

"Ram! The unit we sent in didn't do the trick!"

The sister in question, who had been directing the next units to charge into the fray, stamped her feet. "Darn it! Fine! We'll just pull out something stronger!" Ram quickly looked around, seeing nothing but their own units around them.

"Uhh… There!" Ram pointed at the very thing she had sought out with a smirk on her face. "Let's get them scooched over there! That'll put them close enough!"

Rom beamed. "Yeah! Let's move them over there! I'll let some of our own guys who're over there try to move aside and make some space! Then we can definitely do some real damage!"

Orders were quickly issued and like clockwork they were obeyed, though with the large number of troops assembled it took a bit of time for Rom and Ram's next plan to move into firing position...

* * *

Her tank unit just above half-combat effectiveness and her anti-air unit not much healthier; same could be said for their ammunition. This worried Neptune as another volley of shots sallied towards the bridge, knocking out another Lowee tank and damaging another one. Her forces had the edge in the battle, but it was clear that it was getting more difficult to win with each passing skirmish.

An explosion caused Neptune to flinch. The bridge was becoming littered with ruined husks and smoke as the enemy vehicles continued attacking. The frequent attacks were chipping away at Neptune's defenses and the results were immediate: her units were no longer able to repel the enemy as swiftly and decisively as before. Worse, rather than routing the enemy unit, the prolonged engagement was granting the Lowee advance force time for reinforcements to steadily trundle in from behind.

The tank's turret nudged a little bit to the left and with a thunderous clap, lobbed a yellow-white orb that sailed true to its white-armored counterpart. Despite being outnumbered and weakened, Neptune's troops were faring surprisingly well all things considered. Maybe it was because she was directly on the frontline or because she was in a superior position, but the enemy units they've fought all seem less experienced - their reaction times in moving and firing seemed a little slower than the last time Neptune fought the Lowee Army. Were the Lowee CO(s) that careless?

Suddenly, a low whistling sound was heard before the world around Neptune shook with explosions. Wincing from ringing ears (and because she fell on her bum), Neptune timidly poked out of the hatch. "Wha… What the heck was that?!"

"We're taking artillery fire!" answered a trooper. Blinking as she looked around, Neptune saw the marred landscape at her position. But what worried her the most was that she noticed more of her own units knocked out, and now she was reduced to a group of tanks and anti-air vehicles that she could count with one hand. Across the river, as Neptune cast her gaze, she saw the white boxes-on-treads that made themselves distinct with their cannons that were primed towards the sky. And on the bridge, more Lowee vehicles could be seen trundling forward, and now some of Lowee's infantry who had finally arrived were beginning to cross the river itself with personal dinghies.

As much as she hated to admit it, there was no way she could win this one. "Oh gosh darn it!" Neptune complained. Without wasting even a second for fear of the next artillery barrage, she quickly prattled off her next order. "Um, alright! Everyone, pedal to the metal over there with all the trees and hills!"

Whatever remained of Neptune's tank and anti-air unit immediately lurched into motion as they turned tail away from the bridge. With the natural barrier lost, there would be little to stop the Lowee tide other than herself. Neptune checked back at her map and saw that the capture process of the base was near completion. Other Planeptune troops reported successful capture of other property and were now awaiting new orders.

"Hey! Unless you're busy capturing that base I'll need you all at this rende… randov… whatever! I'll need you guys to meet me at wherever I'm going!"

A chirp of acknowledgements replied but even then Neptune didn't quite feel that it good enough news to turn this situation around. With her combat vehicles worn down and with nothing but infantry with limited anti-tank options as reinforcement, all without the key defensive position she once had, Neptune's chances of holding back the Lowee advance were becoming quite slim.

Ahead, the rolling green slopes and trees came into view as Planeptune vehicles drove inside the forest, driving gingerly between the trees and through thick shrubbery. Neptune looked up at treetops that filtered the sun; from what she remembered, forested terrain did much to provide cover and concealment - far more than open fields - and the feeling of being shaded augmented that impression of protection.

All guns and eyes were trained towards the direction they fled. Neptune clambered up top and peered through her binoculars. By now, the bridge and both sides of the river were crawling with white. Vehicle columns were streaming over the bridge but once across they simply crowded around the other side; no defensive perimeter established nor any semblance of continuing the advance now that they driven back their enemy.

Rustling sounds and engine noise could be heard behind Neptune. One of her APCs had just arrived and its driver popped her head out of the hatch. "Commander Neptune, brought the mech element with us!"

Neptune lit up upon the first of her reinforcements. "Oh good-good-good! While you're here, would you kindly feed my guys more ammo? And when you're done with that, go back out there and get the others."

As the APC went to work and her newly-arrived mech unit moved into position, Neptune turned back to the Lowee beachhead. So far, their vehicles haven't made a move, instead massing aimlessly past the bridge. The Lowee foot soldiers who had made it across the river spanned the flanks but they too held position. Even in favorable terrain, all Lowee had to do was resume their advance and finish what they started.

And yet, they didn't do that.

Neptune risked a quick peek down at her map, and what she saw made her smile wide.

* * *

" _Forward units have made it across the bridge! Planeptune forces have retreated to the woods ahead!_ "

Ram hopped with joy. "Alright! Now we just need to get everything we have and smash Planeptune to bits!"

"Um… Maybe we can go around them and capture their HQ?" Rom asked, her eyes on the map. "It's not like they can beat us with what they have left. Maybe we can convince whoever's in charge to surrender and work for Blanc instead?"

"What?! Why would we do that?! We're here to defeat the Planeptune Army, not make friends with them!"

Rom almost shrank from Ram but held firm. "W-well, I heard that capturing the enemy HQ will look better on our performance than defeating all of the enemy, something about it being more 'skillful' or something. At least, I'm sure that's what big sister said..."

"Grrr… Well what I most positively heard from Blanc was that some Planeptune CO single-handedly drove her back with only a handful of units!" Ram countered. "For all we know, the same thing could happen to us if we just ignore and run past them! We can't risk that!"

"... Um, your orders…?"

Both Rom and Ram's focus was cut short as they finally acknowledged the presence of a Lowee trooper awaiting behind them. At once, the two sisters jumped to each other's side as they focused intently on the map, suddenly remembering that a war was going on. Intense but hushed unintelligible muttering could be heard between the two as they discreetly discussed the next move as the soldier tried not to make her presence awkward. After a few seconds of serious planning and discussion, Rom and Ram spun to face the soldier.

"Right! I'd like these tanks here, here, and here," Ram pointed to specific points on the map to demonstrate what she meant, "to move up and attack their position directly! Make sure to keep them busy!"

"And I would like these units here and there to ride our APCs and have them make a run for their HQ," Rom added as she nudged by her sister's side to voice her own inputs.

Now that actual orders have been received, the soldier snapped a quick salute before departing. Having reached a mutual agreement, Rom and Ram turned their gaze towards the general direction of where the enemy would be waiting for them. Rom brought up her binoculars and surveyed the field: their units were parking idly across the bridge, their orders having yet to be disseminated.

Then she cast her gaze upward where Planeptune defenses were sighted and as she did, Rom noticed something that she just had to mention.

"Hey, Ram? I think I know who the Planeptune CO is..."

* * *

Neptune was glad to receive the first major good news today.

The infantry detachment she had assigned to capture the base had reported its successful acquisition and now it was fully operational. As if on cue, Histoire's voice chimed in.

" _Excellent! Now that the base is under your control, you should now be able to requisition a land unit at will. It will be ready to move shortly after it's been deployed._ "

Neptune rubbed her hands in joy but as if her very actions were being watched, Histoire continued. " _But don't get carried away. As this is your first time handling bases and unit deployment, you'll be restricted to the basic land units. And more importantly, you have a finite amount of resources to deploy them, so please think carefully!_ "

"Whaaaaat…?" Neptune whined. "Oh gimme a break, Histy! Me and my gang are busting our chops out here! Can't you at least give me a bit of leeway?"

" _Calm down, Neptune. The enemy hasn't made any overt moves which means you have some time to establish your defense. The fact that you recognized the need to fall back from the bridge and take up position by the woods was a smart move (by your standards). Now you simply need to bolster your defenses. So long as you can hold them back you can continually replenish your losses, unlike them._ "

"Ohhh, I see!" Neptune beamed. "Okay, so what do you got for me?" She brought up her map and now, the base was colored purple. Tapping the base sprite (a thankfully intuitive feature), a list was presented before Neptune's eyes.

"Uh, okay..." She pondered as she looked through her limited options. From the humble infantry unit to the APC, from the recon to the fragile artillery, there was nothing that she personally hadn't used before. Along with the names of each unit, a 2D pixelated image of the respective unit was provided.

"Okay, so… I'll just get myself another tank unit!" Neptune tapped her pick and the list disappeared. Now the icon used to represent her base on the map was modified with an acknowledgement of her requisition.

" _Very well. The tank unit will be deployed and ready to move on your orders shortly. Do note that until the unit you requisitioned arrives, you will not be able to request another unit._ "

"Gotcha!" came Neptune's energetic reply. Then she paused as a thought occurred to her. "Hey, Histy?"

" _I'm telling you, please call me Histoire!_ "

"Sorry, sorry! Couldn't help but keep calling you that!" Neptune giggled. "So yeah, bases let COs ask for any unit they want where they'll show up no matter what, right?"

" _Um, yes._ "

"So… how does that work exactly?"

A static-filled sigh could be heard. " _I would try to answer your question as succinctly as I could, but now is not the time. Now, back to the mission at hand! The base will be the key to your victory; the battle may be drawn-out and intense, but it is essential that you do not falter! If the situation turns sour, I shall send reinforcements._ "

"Alrighty! I'll hold you on to that!" Neptune chimed. But then a nearby shout instantly put a damper on whatever pleasant feeling Neptune had as she fumbled for her binoculars. There, on the horizon, the massive white blob began shifting like sand against a gentle breeze. From the initial jumble of motion, clear patterns began to form: the armor formed at the center and drove forward while the more nimbler and fragile assets broke off to the left and right.

The Lowee Army had resumed their march.

"... Uh, Histy, I think I could really use those reinforcements right now."

* * *

 _-PLANEPTUNE MILITARY DOSSIER-_

 _SUBJECT TITLE: "BASES & YOU"  
_ _As anyone who has stepped foot on the many many battlefields of Gamindustri, they can all say that one persistent key factor in any battle is the ability to take and hold ground. The most direct method of accomplishing this would be to forcibly push the front line towards the enemy to force them back and seize their territory, but frontlines are established not only by the army's mobility and striking range but by the ownership of varying property scattered throughout the continent. Not only do habitable cities and towns present physical ground to take and hold, they may also possess key structures that no sane CO would ignore in their mission to victory.  
_ _One such property worthy of seizing as priority are the numerous "bases". Dedicated military facilities constructed throughout the history of Wars Dimension, bases are often high on the capture list simply for their ability to deploy land units. These units range from the basic infantry grunts all the way to the mighty Md tanks. Other than combat units, bases are strongholds where supplies and personnel can arrive, fulfilling the same role that outposts, cities, and towns have at repairing and replenishing units currently on the field.  
_ _The way bases (and by extension, their air and naval counterparts) are able to achieve this feat is thanks to the specialized portal gate constructed in all of them. Despite popular conception, bases are not facilities capable of assembling all hardware on the spot. Rather, the units that COs request were either trained or built elsewhere and are teleported in. This handily explains why all units arrive in a timely manner - even behemoths such as battleships take as much time to arrive as a squad of foot soldiers. The only obstacle in summoning units is their deployment costs; the more powerful and massive something is the more expensive they are to bring out and maintain. There's no such thing as a free lunch after all.  
_ _All in all, bases are among one of the most sought-after property in a land war; fate of entire battles can be determined by their placement, ownership, and use. Through this report, I certainly hope that their historical context and background can be preserved for future viewing and guidance for any new commanding officers._

 _-IF_


	10. Beatdown Breakdown

Nepgear watched the mass of white on the 2D map display amassing, filtering over the one bridge, and then building up on the other side. As she watched, she held her breath, expecting the enemy army to use its numbers to batter through her sister's second line of defense that had not even been established at that point. To the relief of everyone, the Lowee Army had instead wavered, as if unsure what to do now that they had accomplished their first objective of crossing the bridge. And in that time, Neptune was able to consolidate her second line of defense, more so now that word had arrived that Neptune's troops in her rear had finally captured a base. Radio chatter and visual displays had indicated that all of the base's systems were functioning and good to go.

But then, the Lowee Army had seemingly made its mind up.

" _... Uh, Histy, I think I could really use those reinforcements right now._ "

This was her chance. Without hesitation, Nepgear spoke out. "Histoire! With your permission, I would like to take to the field, please!"

Histoire and Uzume turned with a surprised look. Nepgear continued, not wasting a second with formalities. "My sister is out there and there's little chance she can hold them back! She needs all the support she can get! Please!"

Uzume blinked and opened her mouth, but said nothing. Instead, another reply made it through. "Of course. Take all your troops that are ready and depart immediately. I will make arrangements to send additional forces that can be spared to your location under your command."

Relief and elation sparked within Nepgear as she received her approval. Even before Histoire was finished talking, Nepgear whipped out a quick salute and hastily departed from the room.

Remaining in the room, Histoire and Uzume only watched as their novice CO left out of sight. Histoire turned back to the map, but also kept an eye on her subordinate. "Is something troubling you, Uzume?"

The question caught the redhead by surprise. "Huh? Oh, nothing. As much as I'd like to get out there and crack some knuckles, I got no problems with you sending Gearsy out into the field. She is her sister after all."

Histoire nodded in agreement. It was perfectly nature for siblings to behave like this. And more importantly, with the war well underway, the Planeptune rookies will need all the experience they can get. There was no telling when this war could end.

And speaking of which…

Risking a turn away from the battle which could rapidly develop, Histoire faced Uzume. "Commander Uzume, if you don't mind, I have a special request for you, effective immediately."

Uzume's interest was piqued. "Oh? Alright, lay it on me."

Fishing a certain scrap of paper from the mound of reports, Histoire presented it in the open, bare to all eyes and attention. Within it, special orders were arranged. "It is a special assignment..."

* * *

The enemy advance looked like a horde of white scarabs as the Lowee Army renewed their drive towards Neptune's frontlines. With darting eyes, Neptune quickly ran another head-count: her tank unit, anti-air, the now-entrenched mech unit, and an APC that had just turned tail and drove away with their given orders. She glanced at her map: the new tank unit that she requisitioned was almost ready to mobilize; only mere seconds before they could arrive. And if she wanted reinforcements to arrive, Neptune will need to buy those precious seconds however she can.

Raising her head a little high, Neptune spied at the encroaching Lowee forces. Their armor were driving forward with intent, their cannons and barrels seemingly aimed at Neptune. It was clear that they knew where her remaining forces were.

Neptune ducked low into her tank, radio in hand. "Alright guys, here they come! We've gotta hold them back however long we can until we can bring in backup! Those snow-heads can try blotting out the sun with their… I dunno, snowballs, then luckily for us we'll fight in the shade!"

" _Um… sure,_ " a lone voice replied from the radio.

" _Commander!_ " The unexpected shout from the speaker jolted Neptune like a cattle prod. "Wha-wha-wha…?!"

" _Bravo Squad here! We're seeing hostile infantry and light armor moving at full speed past our position on the northern flank!_ "

"Say what?!" Neptune scrambled for the map to see a trail of white streaming around her current position, from both north and south. Along their path lay her scattered infantry units she had assigned to secure outlying outposts and settlements. The Lowee Army was snaking their infantry along the cracks in the Planeptune defense, all while attempting to smash the primary defense with their tanks; no matter where Neptune would stop them - and that was a big "if" - she could only lose. If Neptune was a self-assured commander, she would muse about the brilliance of the enemy move - that is, if her blank face didn't betray how alarmed she was.

"Aww shhhh-nitzles! Okay okay, everyone's who's with me, hold position! Everyone else, I'll need you to hold back their pincer advance! I dunno where they're headed, but they can't go any further!" Without waiting for acknowledgements, Neptune swiftly queued another order on her map, setting a rally point for her new tank unit the instant they were ready to move. Finished, she glanced up to see the white tanks suddenly within her reach, as both sides were just about to entire firing range.

"Fire!" A rhythmic outburst of thunder broke out. Cannon rounds from her tanks blunted the enemy advance like a proverbial wall. With the tanks having cleared off a salvo, purple-clad infantry now made their play, popping rockets from the bushes and shrubs. The fumes of rockets joined the wisps of smoke as blackened forms of Lowee tanks were all that remained, now immobile. But between the smoke trails, forms of more white vehicles could be seen rapidly approaching; with the first wave dispatched, they were prepared for Planeptune's welcoming party.

"Again!" Another round of shots rang out. And like before, their rounds hit their marks but this time, their targets answered with their own volley. The mass of the tank buckled as Neptune slipped from her perch.

"Owww..." She gingerly clambered back on her feet, the world within the armored body rumbling and quaking from the war; the tank crew engrossed in their tasks. Neptune pulled herself above the tank's hatch to assess the situation. Braving the drizzle of dirt and enemy fire, Neptune's defense was holding for now: her tank and mech units were reporting minimal damage despite being on the frontline, her anti-air element holding position just behind. Ahead, more and more Lowee vehicles crowded in plain view, all lining up for their shot at the Planeptune forces.

A white angular box slowly trundled to Neptune's right, its exterior almost masked by the smoke. Her foot jerked forward, smacking soft backside. "Hey! Bust that tank over there! Over there!" Neptune exclaimed, frantically pointing. With a faint, annoyed grunt down below, her tank's turret cranked its way. Off to her other side, a Lowee armored car swung around only to be stopped dead in its tracks (or wheels) by a rocket. An enemy tank slowly trundled into firing range, only to be pestered by cannon-fire from a nearby Planeptune anti-air vehicle; the enemy was too close and too many for a Planeptune trooper to ignore.

Neptune flinched as another of one her tanks bit the dust. Her units holding the defense were all taking losses, their combat effectiveness slipping with each engagement. With this many Lowee targets, she could hold the line for only so long. The radio net was abuzz with activity.

Neptune brought up her map and was bombarded with visual information: her bazooka-armed infantry were bereft of their primary ammo, her tank and anti-air units were barely holding on with below-average combat effectiveness, her scattered infantry had been getting trounced by superior Lowee numbers.

With so much stuff going on, Neptune didn't have time to think - or at least, think carefully. Her finger quickly dashed across her map, her mouth just as swift. "OK, mechs! Yeah, you guys! Fall back here!"

"Hey, take that guy over there! Then you follow up with a KO punch!"

"You, you, and you. Yes, you! Get over to this spot! And you, you get over there and get workin'!"

"Commander?" Neptune peered up from her map to meet worried eyes of a fellow Planeptune soldier. "... We're going to get through this, right?"

"Of course!" Neptune answered with bravado. "They may have numbers on their side, but everyone knows that smarts and guts win the day! We'll show 'em how high-level we Planeptune Army are! Remember: believe in me who believes in you!"

A beat followed suit, as the trooper was left baffled at her goddess CO's example of dramatic encouragement; even the outside world remained in silent bewilderment. The awkwardness held until the tank buckled. Squawking, Neptune scrambled back to work at which point her radio buzzed to life.

" _Commander, we're approaching your position on your six!_ " Neptune popped her head out of the hatch to see a handful of boxy but sleek tanks approaching behind her. She didn't need to see their emblem to know whose side they were on.

"Oh that's swell! You get over here as soon as neppingly possible to back us up (and yes, 'neppingly' is a word now)!"

Her reinforcements zoomed right up to Neptune, the defense line now bolstered by a renewed line of steel and guns. With the sudden influx of enemy cannonfire, the Lowee advance hesitated. Like a struggling mathematician suddenly greeted with new variables, the enemy attack noticeably ceased as they reassessed. For the first time, Neptune could actually breathe.

* * *

Ram stamped her feet in a fit once word got back to them. "Oh darn it all!" she cried, "We were wearing ourselves out trying to bust through them and they just rolled in reinforcements!"

Rom tried to assuage her sister's irritation. "Um, it's just a few tanks, Ram. It's not like they sent an entire army at us." She peeked back towards to where the main Planeptune defense held. Even from afar, the tall pillars of black smoke left a tell-tale mark of battle, accompanied by craters and husks of destroyed vehicles. What surviving elements of the Lowee armor she and Ram brought had pulled back. While they paused to lick their wounds, reports from Lowee pincer attacks were mainly positive as their drive proved the flimsiness of the Planeptune defense at their flanks. With little resistance, the path to the enemy HQ was laid bare.

Soon, it wouldn't matter if their foe held the defense at the center.

" _Commander! Forward element A here, enemy resistance has just pulled back. Permission to pursue?_ "

Rom stumbled for the radio. "Um, no, don't chase after them. Just keep heading towards their main base!"

" _Roger!_ " Rom imagined the platoons of their infantry and transports scuttling across the green Planeptune countryside, the rolling plains and long distance concealing any direct line of sight she has with them. Commanding from across the other side of the river, while it deprived the twin sisters of any excitement, guaranteed some bit of tranquility far from the fighting.

Ram had simmered down as she stomped over to the table. "OK, fine! We'll let them keep that stupid forest for now. We'll keep them distracted while our other army go for that HQ like you suggested."

A mischievous grin spread on Rom's face. "Yeah! And they try to protect their base, we'll hit them when they're at their weakest!" She stifled a girlish giggle. "That's a real great plan, right Ram?"

"Yeah!" Ram pumped her fists into the air in victory. "I knew this Planeptune CO was a real pushover! And I bet Blanc will be so impres-"

"Commander!" Rom and Ram jumped at the sudden appearance of a Lowee soldier as she gave a quick salute, breathless. "There's an urgent report! You need to see this!" A slip of paper was hastily shoved into the sisters' small hands. The pair crowded to see what the urgency was inscribed on the report, and as they continued reading, whatever bluster they had of their assured victory evaporated.

"... What?!" exclaimed Ram. "Just where'd they show up from?!"

* * *

Neptune spied on the Lowee forces with care, their presence, though far, remained close to put her and her battered defense on edge (that or it was because of the binoculars). Although her soldiers had managed to blunt the enemy offensive, they were in no shape for another offensive. Worse, the enemy had made progress elsewhere: with her units scattered in her flanks, the Lowee Army was essentially free to do what they wanted.

Neptune judged the situation with frustrating scrutiny, attempting to weigh her options. But no matter how she tried to look at it (even tilting her map upside down), neither option was to her liking. Whether it was falling back to protect the HQ or holding her position, Neptune was caught between a metal dogoo and a hard place.

At least, until she heard a familiar voice over the radio.

" _Neptune! Can you hear me?_ "

"... Nepgear?"

" _I brought my forces with me to back you up._ " A cursory look at Neptune's map revealed that statement to be true, as her rear line was suddenly populated with an assortment of new sprites and indicators. Relief was brought by two factors: the purple hue of the friendly forces, and the mere fact that they outnumbered Neptune's.

" _Neptune, let's win this together!_ "

A cocky smile spread across Neptune's face. "Right-o Player 2! Take care of the HQ defense for me, will ya?"

Far behind where Neptune sat within her tank sat Nepgear from within a Planeptune jeep. From the crested hill, the horizon of the battle was cast before her. Gazing to her front through binoculars, Nepgear knew her sister was out there, even if all she could see of where she was located courtesy of green thickets and smoke plumes. They were far, separated by the warzone, but despite this she could feel her.

And no distance in Wars Dimension would ever separate Nepgear from coming to the aid of her sister.

Hearing Neptune's request, Nepgear replied. "Understood! I've got your back!" She hastily cast her binoculars aside in favor of her map. Bringing up the all-too familiar display of her deployed forces, Nepgear looked ahead to ascertain her first objective: the white-clad interlopers of infantry and light armor that had surged ahead past the main Planeptune defense in favor of the enticing objective of their headquarters.

Nepgear strummed her finger across the display, issuing orders as fast as she worked. "Okay, let's split up: this group here will sweep north while this group sweeps south. Make sure to push the Lowee forces away from the HQ and Neptune's position." The gears of her tanks and APCs rumbled into motion before she even finished. Nepgear glanced back at her map and looked at Neptune's current forces. For a moment, she contemplated whether to reinforce the defense in person but she had spared no unit for such a task.

She sighed but shook her head; she couldn't afford to worry about the what-ifs or should-haves. The radio set burst to life with new transmissions as the map revealed to Nepgear that her forces had made contact with the enemy.

" _Lowee infantry: 12 and 1 o'clock!_ "  
" _Covering fire! Stay in formation!_ "  
" _... Sustained fire! We got 'em beat!_ "

As she predicted, the sudden arrival of Nepgear's forces collided into Lowee's, and as they comprised of nothing heavier than an APC, they were left susceptible to even a lone tank unit. Bereft of any means to combating anything immune to bullets, the Lowee infantry were clearly no match. Within seconds, the Lowee maneuver to outflank Neptune and drive to her headquarters was dashed - all of this, presented to Nepgear on the animated 2D map.

"Excellent! Threat averted!" Nepgear enthusiastically reported. Immediately, she began formulating her next move. "On to stage 2!"

* * *

"Oh, what is going on?!" Ram whined loudly. After receiving preliminary reports of enemy reinforcements, new reports streamed in heralding the destruction of their forward troops. Needless to say, she was not happy.

"I-I think we should pull back," meekly advised Rom. "I-I don't think we can take on both Planeptune COs at once."

With a huff, Ram changed topic. "Ugh! Just who's leading the reinforcements? The other rookie?" Without even bothering to wait an answer, Ram rambled on. "Well, whatever! We'll just have to finish this the old-fashioned way! Come on, Rom!" Pulling out her map, Ram yanked her sister towards her, map in front and radios in hand.

"Alright, here's what we're gonna do: forget about trying to do anything tricky! Tricky is boring and it didn't work! We'll just have to beat those purple-planet pinheads with the numbers we have!" Ram proclaimed boldly.

"Um, right! I want all units to double-back closer to the river," Rom instructed with a more calming tone. "Get all of our heaviest units assembled at the front and center. Please form up as nicely as you can!"

With orders - and a coherent singular thought - given, the deployed Lowee Army mobilized and repositioned accordingly. Whatever progressed they had gained from the pincer maneuver was lost in a single stroke, but it wasn't like they had much of a choice given the new circumstances. As their CO Ram said, there were no room for any more clever moves - enemy reinforcements saw to that. Their next maneuver can only take them straight to their enemy. And with Lowee numbers still healthy, there was still yet one trick up their sleeves:

A war of attrition.


End file.
